---

        T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                           E U R O P E

           Thursday, February 07, 2002, Vol. 3, No. 27


                            Headlines

* F I N L A N D *

SONERA CORP.: Misses Target for Cutting Debt in 2001
DAIMLERCHRYSLER: Revises Freightliner Targets for 2002
DEUTSCHE TELEKOM: Credit Rating Downgrade Threatens DT
HORNITEX WERKE: Set for April Takeover
KIRCHGRUPPE: Forced to Sell Formula 1, Axel Springer Stakes
SCHMIDTBANK GMBH: Francioni Retires From Consors Board

* I R E L A N D *

EIRCOM PLC: Will Receive EUR18MM in Government Aid
ELAN CORPORATION: Chairman Geaney Faces Pressure to Resign
ELAN CORPORTION: Share Value Falls EUR5BB
ELAN CORPORATION: Uses Bermuda Connection to Raise $950MM

* N E T H E R L A N D S *

KPN NV: Atos Origin to Take Over KPN End User Business

* P O L A N D *

ELEKTRIM SA: Creditors Want Dismissal of Execs, Adviser
ELEKTRIM SA: May Sweeten Offer for Bondholders

* U N I T E D   K I N G D O M *

BRITISH TELECOM: MmO2 Cuts Anger Union
BRITISH TELECOM: MMO2 Will Cut 1,900 Jobs to Stem Losses
CLUBHAUS PLC: Names Paul Davidson as New Director
EQUITABLE LIFE: Points to Lost Billions
EQUITABLE LIFE: Policyholders Rebel in Court
IMPERIAL CHEMICAL: Faces 16 Legal Actions in the U.S.
INVENSYS PLC: Investors Seek Asset Disposals to Trim Debt
INVENSYS PLC: Shares Slide on Debt Pile
MARCONI PLC: Sells Rest of Lottomatica Stake for $28MM
NTL INCORPORATED: Shares Dive 23% on De-listing Fears
NTL INCORPORATED: May Face De-Listing From NYSE
WILLIAM BAIRD: Shares Fall 6% on Trading Update


=============
F I N L A N D
=============


SONERA CORP.: Misses Target for Cutting Debt in 2001
----------------------------------------------------

Sonera Corporation, an international forerunner in mobile
communications and mobile-based services and applications,  
has missed a target to cut debt by 70% by the end of 2001,
Bloomberg reported.

The Helsinki-based company now plans to cut debt to 2.5 billion
euros by July.

The yield on Sonera's 1 billion euros of 5.625% notes due March
2005 rose 0.20 percentage point, to 5.94%, or 1.85 percentage
points more than four-year German government debt.

Early this week, Sonera received 310 million euros for the sale
of its 23% stake in Hungarian wireless operator Pannon. The
company will use the proceeds to further strengthen its financial
position.

Sonera was forced to sell off assets and organize in November a
billion-euro rights issue to pay down debts of around 3.5 billion
euros.

Contact Sonera Corporation CFO Kim Ignatius at telephone +358
2040 54015, or via e-mail at kim.ignatius@sonera.com for further
information.


=============
G E R M A N Y
=============


DAIMLERCHRYSLER: Revises Freightliner Targets for 2002
------------------------------------------------------

DaimlerChrysler board member Eckhard Cordes has revised down his
2002 outlook for the North American market for heavy goods
vehicles.

Cordes told Handelsblatt that he is expecting to see a total
market of only 150,000 vehicles sold in the United States and
Canada in 2002.

For the European market, Cordes is still expecting total unit
sales of 275,000.

The Freightliner restructuring plan is so far running according
to plan. The unit had now been able to cut back its high stocks
of new vehicles to a more normal level.

Global economic weakness may hinder efforts to meet
DaimlerChrysler AG's 2002 operating profit target of 5.5 billion
to 6.5 billion euros.

Chief Financial Officer Manfred Gentz said that it would be very
tough to get to those targets as economic developments in
different parts of the world have deteriorated significantly.

Freightliner, Daimlerchrysler's money-losing U.S. division, has
suffered from lower truck values due to a program under which it
had agreed to buy back used trucks at a guaranteed price.


DEUTSCHE TELEKOM: Credit Rating Downgrade Threatens DT
------------------------------------------------------

Deutsche Telekom chief executive Ron Sommer fears that a cut in
the company's credit ratings would cost the company an additional
80 to 100 million euros in annual interest payments, the Telecom
Paper reported Wedensday.

The Bonn-based telecom giant is threatened by a credit rating
downgrade due to uncertainties regarding Liberty Media's 5.5-
billion-euro offer for the shares purchase of 60% of DT's cable-
tv network.

If Liberty does not meet the obligations set by RegTP, the German
regulator, Deutsche Telekom has to quickly find another buyer in
order to avoid the probable credit rating cut.

Last week, Germany's Federal Cartel Office warned that it would
only approve the offer if the U.S. company agrees to create
greater competition in affiliated markets, such as Internet or
telephony, by developing its network.


HORNITEX WERKE: Set for April Takeover
--------------------------------------

Timber merchant Hornitex Werke said that the creditor's
committees appointed by the creditors held a meeting with the
insolvency administrator Rechtsanwalt Dr. Werner Schreiber in
Duesseldorf on January 21 and in Frankfurt on January 23.

The said meeting was with regards to the insolvency proceedings
against the companies of the Hornitex group, with sites in
Duisburg, Horn-Bad Meinberg, Nidda and Beeskow.

Each committee came to the following unanimous decision on the
January 14 offer from the investors interested in taking over the
Hornitex group from insolvency.

Pfleiderer AG, a competitor in the trade, and the private equity
investors Bridgepoint Capital GmbH and Orlando Management
GmbH/Bain Company are all interested in taking over all companies
of the group as a whole.

Prior to starting detailed contractual negotiations, all three
have requested further intensive due diligence research provided
their offers are being considered suitable for negotiations.

Without assuring any of the competitors exclusivity, the
insolvency administrator has been asked and authorized by the
creditors' committees to start detailed negotiations with both
private equity investors and facilitate the requested due
diligence procedure.  

In accordance with the takeover deadline as set by these
investors, the agreement should be completed by April 1, 2002.

By then, the creditors' committee shall legally sign all
contracts subject to prior acceptance.

Insolvency Administrator Dr. Schreiber is confident that the
scheduled time frame can be adhered to and that the conditions
for the intended assigned restructuring from the insolvency can
be turned into a contract by the named date.

Finally the insolvency administrator emphasizes that the transfer
of the whole Hornitex group will bring considerable advantages to
the creditors of the subsidiaries at the various sites.

In addition, Hornitex expects to preserve up to 2,300 jobs, out
of the existing 2,500, if the group can be saved as a whole.

The Hornitex management was forced to place the timber merchant
under the protection of the German Insolvency Law in June 2001
after negotiations with its banks failed.


KIRCHGRUPPE: Forced to Sell Formula 1, Axel Springer Stakes
-----------------------------------------------------------

KirchGruppe, the heavily indebted Munich-based media group, will
be forced to sell its stake in the Formula One holding company
SLEC and its Axel Spring Verlag AG stake due to the pressure from
Germany's leading banks, the Wednesday edition of AFX News said,
citing a Sueddeutsche Zeitung report.

The banks would apply pressure because they are refusing to
extend Kirch's credit lines and without additional loans Kirch
will not survive until the year-end, the paper said.

As part of the plan drawn up by a small group of unnamed
participants, Kirch must give up both its 58.3% Formula One stake
to the carmakers, such as DaimlerChrysler AG, and its 40% stake
in Springer.

Deutsche Bank AG, which holds an 11% stake in DaimlerChrysler, is
thought to be leading the talks to pressure Kirch.

There are also reports from Munich's financial community that
Bayerische Landesbank Girozentrale is not prepared to renew
loans. The Bavarian central savings bank is already Kirch's
largest single creditor, having issued loans totaling 1.5 to 2
billion euros.
  
Alongside Deutsche and BayernLB, Kirch's other major creditors
are HypoVereinsbank Group, JP Morgan Chase & Co. and Dresdner
Bank, which said in December it would not renew a 450 million-
euro loan that expired that month.

Kirch, which has $5 billion in debt, has until April to pay back
the loan.

Kirch should now concentrate on its profitable core operations,
such as its television channel, ProSieben, and film and sports
rights unit KirchMedia, and give up all other units, including
its loss-making payTV unit, Premiere World.


SCHMIDTBANK GMBH: Francioni Retires From Consors Board
------------------------------------------------------

Dr. Reto Francioni, together with Karl Matthaus Schmidt co-CEO of
Nuremberg-based online brokerage firm Consors Discount-Broker AG,
is retiring from the Board of Management with immediate effect.

According to the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Dr. Francioni will be
appointed to the company's Supervisory Board, and Consors
Discount-Broker AG will continue to benefit from his experience
in the development of the European subsidiaries. He will occupy
the seat vacated by Supervisory Board Member Hartmut Bergemann.
Dr. Francioni is also appointed to the Board of Directors of the
Swiss subsidiary of SchmidtBank GmbH & Co. KGaA, Hof.

CEO Karl Matthaus Schmidt will assume Dr. Francioni's former
responsibilities in future.

Consors has been up for sale since November during the near
collapse of its parent company SchmidtBank, which was rescued
from bankruptcy by a consortium of Germany's largest banks,
including HVB, Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, Dresdner Bank and the
Bavarian savings banks.  

Schmidtbank holds a 65% stake in Consors.
The online broker is valued at around 450 million euros ($398
million).


=============
I R E L A N D
=============


EIRCOM PLC: Will Receive EUR18MM in Government Aid
--------------------------------------------------

The government will support a EUR18 million ($15.5 million) plan
of the Dublin-based telecom company Eircom to build new telecoms
infrastructure in the region, reports the Irish Times.

The project includes the deployment of digital subscriber lines,
a technology that enables fast Internet connections but which is
not yet commercially available.

Eircom will bear about 60% of the project's costs, while the
government will shoulder the remaining 40%.

Eircom earlier said it would divest up to 100 million euros in
properties to meet its financial obligations to international
banks for the money lent for the recent takeover led by the
Valentia consortium.
   
Included in the property sale is Eircom's training center at
Kimmage in Dublin, estimated to value between 8 and 12 million
euros. Hamilton Osborne King is handling the sale of the said
center.  
  
The funds raised from the sale are intended to finance productive
investments, cover redundancy payments and pay off Valentia's
debts.  
  
Irish phone company Valentia Telecommunications Limited, backed
by financier George Soros, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and
Providence Equity Partners Inc., as well as Irish billionaire Sir
Anthony O'Reilly, took over Eircom last year for around 3 billion
euros.


ELAN CORPORATION: Chairman Geaney Faces Pressure to Resign
----------------------------------------------------------

Elan Corporation plc chairman and chief executive Donal Geaney
was under pressure Wednesday to resign after Irish institutions,
which lost heavily on Elan shares, called for management changes,
the Irish Independent reported.

Geaney was also under fire after three US law firms, the Irish
paper added, launched class action lawsuits accusing the chemical
company in deceptive accounting practices.

New York City-based law firm Wolf Haldenstein Alder Freeman &
Herz on Tuesday filed a class action against Elan, its officers
and auditors KPMG claiming the company misled the market between
December 21 2000 to February 1, 2002, the Irish paper said.

Elan is also being sued by California-based Milberg Weiss and
Connecticut-based Scott & Scott.

Both law firms claim it distorted its accounts and concealed
material transactions to boost its figures.

Elan however denied such allegations.

Brokers say Elan is now a takeover target after it misjudged the
market's reaction to Monday's profits warning.

Elan surprised the market after announcing that profits in 2002
could be as much as 34% lower than expected because of delays in
the launch of migraine drug Frova and painkiller Prialt.


ELAN CORPORTION: Share Value Falls EUR5BB
-----------------------------------------

Some 5 billion euros was wiped off the value of Elan shares as
the Irish pharmaceutical company released poor growth forecasts
for 2002 and its failure to allay concerns about its accounting
policies, the Irish Times reported.

In Dublin, the shares closed down more than 40% at 19.50 euros.
The company's market value fell from 11.5 billion euros to 6.5
billion euros.

In New York, which is Elan's primary market, the shares were
badly battered, dropping to $14.85 at the close from $29.95 on
Friday.

The company said its revenue growth would be slower than
anticipated this year and forecast net income before other
charges between $570 million and $610 million.

The net income forecast represented a fall of about 15% on the
2001 outcome.


ELAN CORPORATION: Uses Bermuda Connection to Raise $950MM
---------------------------------------------------------

Irish drugs company Elan Corporation had used two controversial
Bermuda-based vehicles to raise US$950 million (GBP670 million)
in the last three years, the Guardian reported Wednesday without
citing sources.

News about off-balance sheet vehicles has surged as lawyers in
America allege Elan of misleading shareholders through false
statements and artificially inflated accounts.

The accusations involve two of Elan's spin-off entities, EPI01
and EPI02, which it legally owns but does not control.

Elan transferred parcels of quoted and unquoted securities into
the reported Bermuda facility in 1999 and 2000, where they
invited banks and financial institutions to invest over a five-
year period.

Investors in the EPI01 and EPI02, the report added, are not
allowed to sell any of the securities, of which only 40% are
traded publicly, unless they agree to takeover offers.

Elan's vice chairman Tom Lynch said he did not know the identity
of the investor-appointed boards of directors who control the
controversial vehicles.

Previously, the entities were disclosed in Elan's Irish and
British accounts but not in the company's accounts in the US
where the majority of its investors are.

Elan's shares are traded in London, New York and Dublin. The 18%
fall took them to a five-year record low of 16 euros in Dublin,
completing a 70% collapse in a week.

The drug company admitted that earnings in 2001 would have been
much lower if two off-balance sheet venture funds had been
consolidated into its accounts.


=====================
N E T H E R L A N D S
=====================


KPN NV: Atos Origin to Take Over KPN End User Business
------------------------------------------------------

Heavily indebted Hague-based telecommunications company KPN  
Telecom NV said Tuesday that Atos Origin, the leading European IT
services provider, has signed a letter of intent to manage KPN
End User Services business for a minimum period of 6 years.

The agreement is currently awaiting advise from the relevant Work
Councils and approval of the Dutch competition authority.

Both parties expect to complete the transaction by the end of
March 2002, at which time further operational and financial
details will be released.

The agreement will involve the transfer of about 700 KPN
employees to Atos Origin.

The KPN End User Services provides desktop management services
for the KPN organizations in the Netherlands, including its
distribution channels and production units.

Early this week, KPN Mobile had completed the sale of its 44.66%
stake in Hungarian mobile operator Pannon GSM to Norwegian
telecoms group Telenor, reaping 603 million euros in proceeds.

The transaction is part of KPN's non-core assets disposal program
from which the net cash proceeds are used to reduce net debt.

KPN, according to chief financial officer Maarten Henderson,
currently has 8.8 billion euros in cash on hand, while the
company's net debt as of December 31 is estimated at 16.5 billion
euros.


===========
P O L A N D
===========


ELEKTRIM SA: Creditors Want Dismissal of Execs, Adviser
-------------------------------------------------------

A group of Elektrim creditors is demanding for the ouster of the
Polish company's senior executives and its London-based adviser,
the Daily Deal reported.

Jarek Golacik, a spokesman for the bondholders' group in London,
which represents a majority of the holders of the company's
defaulted bonds, describes the strategy of the current management
and adviser Klesch & Co. of London as reckless, provocative and
confrontational.

The bondholders have repeatedly said they will accept nothing
less than full repayment plus compensation for the delay.

Bingham Dana llp in London is the bondholders' legal adviser.

Last week, Elektrim's veteran deputy CEO, Jacek Walczykowski, was
suspended because of differences over the debt issue.


ELEKTRIM SA: May Sweeten Offer for Bondholders
----------------------------------------------

Warszawa-based telecommunications and power conglomerate
Elektrim SA hopes to secure a debt restructuring deal by May, but
its adviser said early this week there was little room to sweeten
an offer already rejected by bondholders, the Warsaw Business
Journal reported.

Should the cash-strapped company fail to reach an agreement with
holders of 480 million euros ($412.8 million) worth of bonds, the
company would become Poland's biggest bankruptcy ever.

Adviser Gary Klesch of London-based financial consultants Klesch
& Company Limited said that Elektrim wants to settle a deal with
bondholders before a key shareholders meeting in May.

Talks will not be easy since Elektrim cannot sell or leverage its
prized stake in mobile phone operator Polska Telefonia Cyfrowa
(PTC) until an arbitration case against Deutsche Telekom is
settled, Klesch added.

Elektrim SA is holding back its negotiations to repay defaulted
bonds, the Warsaw Business Journal reports.  

In January, the group of bondholders filed the petition in a
Warsaw court calling for Elektrim's bankruptcy after the concern
defaulted on the repayment of 480 million euros worth of
unsecured bonds in December 17.

The court later dismissed the petition and ordered Elektrim to
begin composition, or debt restructuring proceedings to repay its
bondholders.  

Elektrim filed a court petition on the same month, proposing a
40% reduction of its debt and a three-year grace period for
repaying the remainder.

The Warsaw court is scheduled to convene February 13 when
Elektrim must present a list of its creditors and the amounts
they are owed.  

If the creditors reject Elektrim's settlement offer, the court
would automatically close the composition procedure and they
would be able to file a second bankruptcy petition.  

Elektrim has been suffering serious liquidity problems
since 1999, when the then CEO Barbara Lundberg launched an
ambitious and high leveraged round of telecom and cable TV
acquisitions.


===========================
U N I T E D   K I N G D O M
===========================


BRITISH TELECOM: MmO2 Cuts Anger Union
----------- --------------------------

Unions are threatening for an industrial action after pan-
European mobiles group mmo2 unveiled plans to cut 1,900 jobs, the
Times newspaper reported.

The Communication Workers Union and Connect, representing
professional staff members, threatened a showdown with mmO2 if it
used compulsory redundancies to meet its targets.

Adrian Askew, deputy general secretary at Connect, said the
unions were extremely disappointed but would work with mmO2 to
ensure redundancies were voluntary.


BRITISH TELECOM: MMO2 Will Cut 1,900 Jobs to Stem Losses
--------------------------------------------------------

Mobile-phone company MM02 Plc will slash 1,900 jobs, or 13% of
its workers, to stem losses.

According to a Bloomberg report, the workforce reduction and the
planned closure of 133 store, or two-fifths of retail stores in
the U.K., will save about 70 million pounds a year beginning in
April.

Of the job cuts, 1,400 will be in the U.K. and 500 in Germany.

MMO2, which was spun off in November from what is now known as BT
Group Plc, owns Viag Interkom GmbH in Germany, Telfort Mobiel in
the Netherlands, Digifone in Ireland and BT Cellnet in the U.K.

Viag had a loss before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization in the three months to September 30 of 48 million
pounds. Telfort's loss on the same basis was 37 million pounds in
that quarter.

BT Group has been trying to reduce spending by selling
unprofitable businesses and spinning off its wireless unit to
pare debt, which had tripled to 27.9 billion pounds ($40.3
billion) in the year ended March 2001.


CLUBHAUS PLC: Names Paul Davidson as New Director
-------------------------------------------------

Paul Davidson, who has reportedly offered 65 million pounds for
London-based golf course and health club operator Clubhaus PLC,
is joining the board of the struggling company as a non-executive
director, AFX News reported.

Clubhaus, which defaulted on interest payments in December, is
currently in talks with bankers about restructuring its debt of
about 105 million pounds.

The group is negotiating for a debt-for-equity swap deal with
plans to support a share issue open to ordinary shareholders.

Shareholders include Paul Davidson (15.21%), Edinburgh Fund Mgrs  
PLC (10.73%), PDFM Ltd (7.91%), AXA Equity & Law Life Assur  
(5.96%), Electra Quoted Mngt Ltd (5.92%), Crown Sports PLC  
(3.86%), Singer & Friedlander Inv Mgmt (3.36%), A Baron Von  
Spoercken (1.74%), other Directors (0.51%).

The present value of Clubhaus is 4.9 million pounds.


EQUITABLE LIFE: Points to Lost Billions
---------------------------------------

Equitable Life disclosed during its first day hearing at the High
Court in London that its with-profits fund lost nearly 1.9
billion pounds in early surrenders and maturities in the last
three months of 2001.

Equitable chief executive Charles Thomson said the fund had lost
1.86 billion pounds, bringing it to a value of just over 18
billion pounds. The fund stood at nearly 34 billion pounds in
1999.

Disaffected policyholders lined up to condemn the insurer and its
controversial compromise scheme. One of those who spoke was
representing several policyholders living in Greece, and claimed
Equitable was at risk of being in breach of Greek law.

Under the deal, those with guaranteed annuity rate (GAR) pension
policies will see their policy value boosted by an average of
17.5%. In return they will give up their right to a guaranteed
pension rate.

Those who do not have a guarantee will have the value of their
policy increased by 2.5% in return for signing away rights to sue
for mis-selling.

Nine separate court cases concerning alleged mis-selling have
begun against the society. The insurer is defending all of these,
and has received letters before action in respect of eight
further potential GAR-related mis-selling claims.

The financial ombudsman service has so far received about 1,000
complaints relating to alleged mis-selling.


EQUITABLE LIFE: Policyholders Rebel in Court
--------------------------------------------

Nearly 30 angry policyholders of Equitable Life filed submissions
in the High Court early this week in an attempt to attack the
rescue package for the troubled insurer.

The policyholders, including holders of with-profits annuities,
claim that the compromise scheme agreed a week ago was unfair
because it asked for contractual agreements made between the
society.

Policyholder Nicholas Bellord said Equitable was "out of control"
and had become a "hard-nosed commercial company, which disregards
its members".  

The hearing is the final barrier to implementing the compromise
deal intended to cap Equitable's GBP1.6-billion liability to
holders of guaranteed pension policies.

The rescue package was put together following Equitable's closure
to new business after a House of Lords ruling on the pension
guarantees.


IMPERIAL CHEMICAL: Faces 16 Legal Actions in the U.S.
-----------------------------------------------------

Imperial Chemical Industries plc is facing 16 product liability
court cases regarding lead in paint manufactured by its American
subsidiary Glidden, reports The Guardian newspaper.

ICI obtained a critical judgment from a Rhode Island court, which
will set the timetable for a series of hearings on product
liability.

Glidden was named as a defendant in 14 cases last year while
three were dismissed, a further five new ones came up for review.

It was also involved in a separate tort claim on asbestos against
Union Carbide.

However, ICI confirmed it had bought asbestos from Union Carbide
but only in small quantities for experimental uses.

Chief executive Brendan O'Neil defended ICI by saying, "Across
the US, Glidden has faced more than 100 cases in the past 10
years and all have been won. The industry intends to vigorously
defend the latest claims and we continue to expect Glidden to
prevail."

The London-based chemical group launched a GBP808 million rights
issue at 180p per share aimed at cutting its GBP2.9 billion debt.


INVENSYS PLC: Investors Seek Asset Disposals to Trim Debt
---------------------------------------------------------

Invensys Plc, Britain's largest engineering company, is planning
to outline a new strategy later this month, which several
analysts and investors said should focus on non-core asset
disposals as a way to cut debt.

According to a Reuters' report, investment manager Wesley McCoy
of Standard Life Investments, one of Invensys' ten largest
shareholders, said the best way to strengthen the company's
balance sheet is through asset disposals.

Invensys sold its battery technology unit in January for $505
million.

An Invensys spokesman said its Air Systems Products unit is up
for sale and is being actively marketed. He declined to comment
on any other potential disposals.

Invensys' Flow Control unit is also expected to be on the auction
block, which should fetch about 400 million pounds. One analyst
estimated other non-core disposals and net cash inflow should cut
net debt to about 2.2 billion pounds by the end of the current
financial year on March 31.

The London-based company was battered last year with two profit
warnings, change of its chief executive, the layoff of 6,300 jobs
and 3.3 billion pounds ($4.7 billion) of debt at September 30.


INVENSYS PLC: Shares Slide on Debt Pile
---------------------------------------

Shares of Invensys fell 8.5p to 98p on Tuesday, after falling
8.6% on Monday amid investor concerns about its debt burden, the
Financial Times reported.

The shares have now dropped from 130p in January.

The company had net debt of 3.3 billion pounds ($4.7 billion) at
the end of September.

Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein expects Invensys to be able to
trim its net debt to 2.2 billion pounds by the end of its
financial year to March 31.


MARCONI PLC: Sells Rest of Lottomatica Stake for $28MM
------------------------------------------------------

Marconi plc sold the rest of its holding (4.9 million shares) in
Italian-listed company Lottomatica SpA for about 19.7 million
pounds ($28 million) as the London-based telecom equipment
company tries to reduce net debt.

In November, Marconi sold 6.16 million Lottomatica shares for
6.55 euros each in an offering managed by Schroder Salomon Smith
Barney.

The unprofitable company, which has 1 billion pounds in available  
cash, has been selling non-phone equipment assets, including its
optical components business and data systems unit, to help reduce
a debt of 3.5 billion pounds as of December 2001.

Marconi is now valued at 667 million pounds.


NTL INCORPORATED: Shares Dive 23% on De-listing Fears
-----------------------------------------------------

Shares of debt-laden NTL fell 23% to 29 cents on Tuesday after it
asked the New York Stock Exchange for six month's grace to
prevent its shares from being de-listed, the Financial Times
reported.

Under the exchange's rules, shares, which have been below $1 for
30 consecutive trading days, can be de-listed.

NTL said early this week that it would not declare dividends on
some of its preferred stock. The dividends have traditionally
been paid in the form of additional shares.


NTL INCORPORATED: May Face De-Listing From NYSE
-----------------------------------------------

Debt-laden British cable television operator NTL Inc may face
expulsion from the New York Stock Exchange after its shares
slumped 99% in the past year.

Under NYSE rules, a company's shares must trade at a value above
$1 for 30 consecutive days. NTL's shares were last above $1 on
January 8, when they reached $1.15.

NTL, which has been under fire for months regarding its ability
to pay its $17.5 billion debt, has requested the NYSE for up to
six months to come into conformity with the minimum share value
requirement.

Last week, the company appointed investment banks J.P. Morgan
Chase & Co., Credit Suisse First Boston and Morgan Stanley Dean
Witter & Co. to handle the talks with holders of its $11.5
billion in junk-rated bonds aimed at trimming the company's debt.


WILLIAM BAIRD: Shares Fall 6% on Trading Update
-----------------------------------------------

Shares in William Baird slipped 6% to 45.5p Tuesday after U.K.'s
largest concession retailer disappointed investors with downbeat
trading figures.

Glasgow-based Baird reported a drop in like-for-like sales across
its ranges, including the key womenswear brands of Windsmoor,
Planet and Precis Petites.

In the 10 weeks to January 26, underlying sales slipped 12%,
contributing to a 1% fall over the 56-week period.

Sales of Dannimac rainwear were disappointing, slumping 66% in
the 10 weeks and 45% in the 56-week period.

Trading in the active and casualwear arm also slumped, falling
11% in the 56-week period.

The sales update came after a profits warning in November and
included details of a provision of between 5 million and 10
million pounds.

Baird, which has struggled since its M&S supplier status came to
an end, was forced to set aside the cash to cover potential
liabilities.

It has postponed its planned 2p-a-share interim dividend in
September as the loss-making group plunged 7.8 million pounds
into the red before tax in the six months to June, compared to a
1.6-million-pound pre-tax profit last time.
  
William Baird designs, manufactures and sells clothing
principally in the United Kingdom, Europe and Asia.

Its net debt at June 30, 2001 has fallen to 21.3 million pounds
compared with 43.0 million pounds a year earlier.

                                    ***********

        S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter -- Europe is a daily newsletter co-
published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Trenton, NJ
USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, DC USA. Kimberly MacAdam,
Salve M. Mordeno and Maria Lourdes Reyes, Editors.

Copyright 2002.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2754.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic
re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior
written permission of the publishers.  

Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
be reliable, but is not guaranteed.

The TCR Europe subscription rate is $575 per half-year, delivered
via e-mail.  Additional e-mail subscriptions for members of the
same firm for the term of the initial subscription or balance
thereof are $25 each.  For subscription information, contact
Christopher Beard at 240/629-3300.


                  * * * End of Transmission * * *