/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR

/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/020807.mbx 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 Wednesday, August 7, 2002, Vol. 3, No. 155 Headlines * F I N L A N D * SONERA: Inquiry Into 3G License Clears Ministers and Officials * F R A N C E * VIVENDI ENVIRONNEMENT: Completes EUR1.529 BB Capital Increase VIVENDI ENVIRONNEMENT: Convenes AGM of Bondholders * G E R M A N Y * CEWE COLOR: Photofinisher Begins Share Buy-back Program HELKON MEDIA: Insolvent Group Announces Management Changes PIXELPARK AG: Sells Business Ops. in France to French IT Provider * I R E L A N D * DATALEX PLC: Q2 and Interim Results Ending June 30, 2002 ELAN CORPORATION: May Sell Drugs for USD1.5BB to Pay Debts * I T A L Y * BLU SPA: European Commission Decides Blu Will Be Broken Up * N E T H E R L A N D S * COMPLETEL EUROPE N.V.: Notice of Extraordinary General Meeting COMPLETEL EUROPE: AGM and EGM Will Be Held on August 20, 2002 KPN NV: Vision Networks Sells Czech Interest * S W E D E N * TRANSJET: Goes Into Receivership, Expects More Than 60 Job Cuts * U N I T E D K I N G D O M * ABERDEEN ASSET: Names Reid as Executive Director BNFL PLC: CEO Receives 18% Salary Increase Despite GBP2.3 BB Loss BIOCOMPATIBLES INTERNATIONAL: Notice of Major Interest in Shares BIOCOMPATIBLES INTERNATIONAL: Notice of Major Interest in Shares CLUBHAUS PLC: Notification of Major Interest in Shares COMPASS GROUP: Issues Notice of Major Interest in Shares CONSIGNIA: Faces Danger From TPG COOKSON: Shareholders Approve GBP277.5 MM Rights Issue RAILTRACK: Spent 10% of Budget in Consultancy Fees in 2001 TELEWEST COMMUNICATIONS: Carlton Plans to Bid on SMG Shares TELEWEST COMMUNICATIONS: Moody's Downgrades Debt Rating to Ca UNIQ PLC: Issues Announcement on Major Interest in Shares ============= F I N L A N D ============= SONERA: Inquiry Into 3G License Clears Ministers and Officials ----------------------------------------------------------------- A special inquiry into Sonera's unsuccessful investment in a German 3G license has absolved ministers and senior officials of any alleged involvement in the decision, a report from the Financial Times said. Citing Kimmo Sasi, minister of transport and communications, the paper reported that the government did not discuss the matter. The government also denied relaying instructions to the company's management or board of directors regarding the matter. Earlier last month, Sonera wrote off USD4.2 billion of investments in 3G licenses in Germany. The Finnish company is partly owned by the state, which holds 53%, the paper added. A different investigation into the matter is set to begin soon. Finlands Attorney General will handle the inquiry, the Financial Times said. =========== F R A N C E =========== VIVENDI ENVIRONNEMENT: Completes EUR1.529 BB Capital Increase -------------------------------------------------------------- Vivendi Environnement -- http://www.vivendienvironnement- finance.com --announces the successful completion of its Euro 1.529 billion capital increase. The capital increase, first announced on June 24, represents 57,698,184 new shares or 14.3% of its share capital (after the increase in capital). Despite a difficult market environment, two thirds of Vivendi Environnement's shareholders, excluding Vivendi Universal, subscribed to this operation. The capital increase was achieved through the exercise of preferential subscription rights, whereby six preferential subscription rights entitled their holder to subscribe to one new share in the capital increase. Vivendi Universal sold all of its preferential subscription rights to Declared Investors (Financial Institutions in the group: Caisse des Depots et Consignations, Groupama, BNP Paribas, Societe Generale, Dexia, Assurances Generales de France, Credit Lyonnais, Caisse Nationale des Caisses d'Epargne, Natexis Banques populaires). These investors subscribed to (i) the new shares issued in respect of the preferential subscription rights acquired from Vivendi Universal and (ii) all of the new shares to be issued in respect of preferential subscription rights that were not exercised by their holders. These Declared Investors have agreed to a 6-month lock-up period within the framework of the capital increase. The details of this agreement can be found within the prospectus approved by the French Commission des operations de bourse on June 26, 2002. Taking into account all of the preferential subscription rights exercised by the other shareholders, the Declared Investors acquired in aggregate 38,073,817 new shares in the capital increase, representing 9.4% of Vivendi Environnement's share capital. The Declared Investors have indicated that they are not acting, and will not act, in concert with respect to the shares of Vivendi Environnement. Vivendi Environnement's shareholder structure after the capital increase is the following as of August 2, 2002: Vivendi Universal: 164,868,926 shares, thus 40.8% of share capital; Declared Investors: 38,073,817 shares acquired during the capital increase, thus 9.4% of share capital; Public: 200,944,545 shares, thus 49.8% of share capital (Note: Includes ownership of the Declared Investors before the capital increase) Total number of shares: 403,887,288. A prospectus relating to the capital increase was approved by the French Commission des operations de bourse under number 02-801 on June 26, 2002. Contact Information: Estelle Guillot Telephone: +33 1 53 70 74 70 Europe: Nathalie Pinon Investor Relations Telephone: +33 1 71 75 01 67 VIVENDI ENVIRONNEMENT: Convenes AGM of Bondholders --------------------------------------------------- As previously announced, Vivendi Environnement has decided to convene on 20 August 2002 at its registered head office a general meeting of the holders of its bonds convertible into Vivendi Universal shares issued in 1999 and redeemable in 2005. If a quorum is not obtained at such meeting, a second general meeting of bondholders will be convened on 27 August 2002. Vivendi Environnement will propose to the bondholders the release of the guarantee by Vivendi Universal with respect to such bonds and, accordingly, the acceleration clause in the event of a default by Vivendi Universal. In consideration thereof, Vivendi Environnement will propose an increase of 0,75 % in the nominal interest rate taking it from 1,50 % to 2,25 % as of 1st of September 2002. Contact Information: Nathalie Pinon Investor relations Telephone: +33 1 71 75 01 67 ============= G E R M A N Y ============= CEWE COLOR: Photofinisher Begins Share Buy-back Program ------------------------------------------------------- CeWe Color Holding AG, the largest independent European photofinisher - is continuing with its share buy-back program, the company announced Tuesday. The company announces that the Board of Management has decided to buy back 200,000 of the company's own shares on the basis of the resolution passed at the Annual General Meeting on June 20, 2002. The company is authorized, for a period of 18 months (to December 19, 2003), to acquire its own shares in order to utilize these as consideration for the acquisition of equity holdings in companies or in parts of companies. The buy-back is to be carried out on the German Stock Exchange, at a purchase price which does not exceed or fall short by more than 10 % of the average closing price of the share of the company in current trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange on three respective preceding trading days. The Board of Management has been authorised to buy back up to 200,000 of the company's own shares, but only so many that the proportion of authorized capital of the company pertaining to the acquired shares as well as the 400,00 own shares acquired on the basis of the resolution of the Annual General Meeting of June 17, 1999 does not exceed 10 % of the authorized capital. Contact Information: CeWe Color Holding AG Hella Meyer Telephone: 0441 / 404 - 400 Fax: 0441 / 404 - 421 EMail: hella.meyer@cewecolor.de Internet: http//http://www.cewecolor.de HELKON MEDIA: Insolvent Group Announces Management Changes ---------------------------------------------------------- Mr. Arno Waschkau as a chairman, Mr. Melville D Mummert as deputy chairman and Mr. Burkhard Vogel as a third member of the supervisory board of the Helkon Media AG steps down from their positions with immediate effect, the company announced Friday. PIXELPARK AG: Sells Business Ops. in France to French IT Provider ----------------------------------------------------------------- Pixelpark is withdrawing from the French market and, in keeping with the strategy of concentrating on core business the company announced at the end of 2001, in future it will be focusing on the market in the German-speaking countries. Pixelpark has attracted the local IT service provider, Aston, as a partner for the French market. With effect from August 1, 2002 Aston will be taking over the operative employees at Pixelpark France along with all current and pending client business. Pixelpark will cease its operating business in France. ============= I R E L A N D ============= DATALEX PLC: Q2 and Interim Results Ending June 30, 2002 -------------------------------------------------------- Datalex plc -- www.datalex.com --, a leading provider of technology solutions for the global travel and transportation industry, will announce on September 2, 2002, its second-quarter and interim financial results for the period ended June 30, 2002. Neil Beck, Chief Executive Officer indicated that results would be in line with expectations. Datalex is a leading provider of technology solutions for the global travel industry. Founded in 1985, the company is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, and maintains offices throughout the world: Europe (Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Paris, Manchester); USA (Atlanta, Petaluma, Minneapolis); and Asia- Pacific (Melbourne, Singapore). Datalex's customers include Aer Lingus, Air Canada, Amadeus, American Express, American Trans Air, Amtrak, California State Automobile Association, Delta Air Lines, Disney Cruise Lines, FAR&WIDE, Galileo, KLM, Lufthansa, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, SNCF, Sol Melia, South African Airways, Thomas Cook, Trailfinders, Travelcare and Unisys. Datalex is a publicly held company traded on the Irish Stock Exchange. ELAN CORPORATION: May Sell Drugs for USD1.5BB to Pay Debts ----------------------------------------------------------- Irish pharmaceuticals group ELAN Corporation plc is searching for buyers for Azactam, Maxipime and Abelcet, three of its products for infections, Financial Times sources say. The move is a main part of its emergency plan to raise USD$1.5 billion (IEP950 million) in the next 18 months, the report reveals. In addition, Elan is also thinking of selling its drug delivery and diagnostics businesses to help meet its upcoming debt repayments. On Wednesday, Elan outlined the details of its restructuring, including 1,000 redundancies of 20 % of the workforce and plans to raise an extra USD500 million in cash on top of the USD1 billion that it had earliear announced. The group did not specify which assets the company plans to divest. The three anti-infective drugs recorded sales last year of USD210 million, about a third of the group's total revenues from pharmaceuticals, the news agency says. ========= I T A L Y ========= BLU SPA: European Commission Decides Blu Will Be Broken Up ---------------------------------------------------------- Beleaguered Italian mobile phone operator Blus SpA, is set to be broken up following the withdrawal of the objections by European competition regulators due to the company's financial difficulties, a report from the Financial Times said. The Commission's decision to overturn a previous ruling to force the Benettons to sell Blu as a whole, came after nearly a year of intense lobbying from the Italian government led by Silvio Berlusconi. Previously in September 2001, the Brussels authorities cleared the takeover of Telecom Italia, which owns Italy's largest mobile phone operator. However, the authorities ordered Edizione, the Benettons' holding company, to sell its controlling stake in Blu. The European Commission reasoned there was no "suitable purchaser" for the entire Blu, that' why it had reached the decision that mobile phone company should be broken up. Another reason according to the commission is Blu's current financial difficulties and the risk that the company might be put into liquidation, the daily said. Under the plan of breaking up Blu, which was presented by Edizione and championed by the Italian government, the company's assets will be distributed among its rivals, the paper said. Among the companies that would receive Blu's assets is Wind, Italy's third-largest operator, which will get Blu's 2m customer list and its brand name. The company's transmission sites will be distributed among all the operators, which include Vodafone's subsidiary Omnitel, and H3G, owned by the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa, the daily said. Blu's frequencies will be returned to the Italian telecom regulator, which is expected to reallocate them mainly to companies that want to provide third-generation mobile phone services, the Financial Times said. ===================== N E T H E R L A N D S ===================== COMPLETEL EUROPE N.V.: Notice of Extraordinary General Meeting -------------------------------------------------------------- To the shareholders of Completel Europe N.V: We, CompleTel Europe N.V., invite you to attend our extraordinary general meeting that will take place at the World Trade Center, Schipholboulevard 127,1118 BG, Schiphol, The Netherlands. This meeting will begin at 3:00 p.m. local time on Tuesday, August 20, 2002. The purposes of the meeting are as follows: (a) To amend our articles of association in order to provide for a 670-to-one reverse split of each of our Ordinary shares, combined with a reduction in the nominal value of the resulting shares to EURO 0.04 per share; (b) To amend our articles of association to enable us to effect our recapitalization, as described in the attached proxy statement, in accordance with the proposal of our Board of Management, as approved by our Supervisory Board; (c) To grant discharge to the members of our Supervisory Board and Board of Management from liability in respect of the exercise of their duties in connection with our recapitalization; (d) To authorize the redemption, on July 1, 2007, of the Preferred shares to be issued in our recapitalization in accordance with their terms; and (e) To discuss such other business as may properly come before the meeting. Proposals (b), (c), and (d) are collectively referred to herein and in the attached proxy statement as the "recapitalization proposals." Effectiveness of each of the recapitalization proposals is conditioned upon approval of all of the other recapitalization proposals and other conditions described in the attached proxy statement. Holders of approximately 60% of our outstanding Ordinary shares have previously agreed to vote in favor of the recapitalization proposals, so that their passage is assured. We are seeking the approval of the recapitalization proposals in connection with our proposed recapitalization. We currently estimate that, in the absence of this approval, Completel SAS, our operating subsidiary, would fully utilize its existing cash resources by the end of August 2002, become insolvent and be required to be liquidated, which would effectively also result in our liquidation. The proposed recapitalization is intended to address this lack of funding. We expect that, upon the completion of the recapitalization, our cash balances, together with the anticipated cash flow from our operations, will provide us with sufficient capital to fully fund our business to cash flow breakeven. COMPLETEL EUROPE: AGM and EGM Will Be Held on August 20, 2002 ------------------------------------------------------------- CompleTel Europe N.V., a facilities-based provider of fiber optic local access telecommunications and Internet services to business end-users, carriers and ISPs in France, announced Monday that its annual general meeting will be held on August 20, 2002 at 13.00h CET at the World Trade Center, Schipholboulevard 127, 1118 BG, Schiphol, The Netherlands. This meeting will be followed at 14.00h CET by an extraordinary general meeting regarding the current recapitalisation plan of Completel Europe N.V. The purposes of the annual general meeting is as follows: 1. To discuss our statutory annual accounts and the other information referred to in Article 392 of Book 2 of the Dutch Civil Code; 2. To deliver the written report by our Board of Management on the state of our affairs and the management conducted during 2001; 3. To adopt our statutory annual accounts for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2001; and 4. To grant discharge to the members of our Supervisory Board and Board of Management from liability in respect of the exercise of their duties during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2001. The purpose of the extraordinary general meeting is as follows: 1. To amend our articles of association in order to provide for a 670-to-one reverse split of each of our Ordinary shares, combined with a reduction in the nominal value of the resulting shares to euro 0.04 per share; 2. To amend our articles of association to enable us to affect our recapitalization, as described in the proxy statement mailed to our shareholders today, in accordance with the proposal of our Board of Management, as approved by our Supervisory Board; 3. To grant discharge to the members of our Supervisory Board and Board of Management from liability in respect of the exercise of their duties in connection with our recapitalization; 4. To authorize the redemption, on July 1, 2007, of the Preferred shares to be issued in our recapitalization in accordance with their terms; and 5. To discuss such other business as may properly come before the meeting. Completel Europe NV (Euronext Paris: CTL). Completel is a facilities-based provider of fiber optic local access telecommunications and Internet services to business end- users, carriers and ISPs in France. Contact Information: Stefan Sater Director Investor Relations CompleTel Europe N.V. Telephone +33-1-72-92-20-43 Email: s.sater@completel.fr KPN NV: Vision Networks Sells Czech Interest --------------------------------------------- Vision Networks, the KPN cable company corporatised in 1997, today sold Vision Networks Tsjechi‰ Holding BV (a wholly-owned subsidiary) to Betbari Holding, owner of TES Media, the third largest cable operator in the Czech Republic. Vision Networks Tsjechi‰ Holding BV owns Intercable Cz, the Czech Republic's second cable operator. The sale is subject to the approval of the Czech competition authorities. This transaction marks the completion of KPN's disposal of cable activities except for an immaterial interest in Poland. KPN had already sold off its cable interests in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France and Germany. =========== S W E D E N =========== TRANSJET: Goes Into Receivership, Expects More Than 60 Job Cuts -------------------------------------------------------------- Swedish-based airline charter company, Transjet, has left U.K. bases and has entered into receivership, a report from the Newsquest Media Group said. It is expected that more than 60 job cuts across the U.K. following the company's admission that it could not pay its staff, the news agency reported. The company, which recorded the worst average delays - 103 minutes - had problems from its launch in 2000. Transjet operated three Boeing 747s and six McDonald Douglas MD- 83 aircraft, NewsQuest said. =========================== U N I T E D K I N G D O M =========================== ABERDEEN ASSET: Names Reid as Executive Director ------------------------=----------------------- Aberdeen Asset Management PLC is pleased to announce that Iain Reid has been invited to join the Board as an Executive Director with immediate effect. Iain is also Chief Executive of Aberdeen Property Investors International Limited. The Company confirms that there is no information to be disclosed under Para.6F.2(b) to (g) of the Listing Rules. Contact Information: Iain Reid Aberdeen Asset Management Telephone:020 7747 1700 BNFL PLC: CEO Receives 18% Salary Increase Despite GBP2.3 BB Loss ----------------------------------------------------------------- British Nuclear Fuels' chief executive is reported to have received 18% increase in pay last year despite the company's GBP2.3 billion loss, the Independent said. BNFL's recently published report and accounts show that Norman Askew's pay went up from GBP433,000 in 2000-01 to GBP509,000 - an increase of GBP76,000, the paper said. A big part of the increase was because of a rise in Mr Askew's annual bonus to GBP136,510 compared with GBP75,250 the previous year. His basic pay went up from GBP350,000 to GBP365,000, the daily reported. BNFL said the increase was justifiable since Mr Askew and the rest of the management had met their targets for improving the operating performance of the business, the daily said. The state-owned reprocessing company plunged into a GBP2.3bn loss after it took a GBP1.94 billion charge to reflect the increase in its historic nuclear liabilities. These are now calculated at GBP40.5 billon. The report also reveal that BNFL's finance director, John Edwards' salary increased from GBP247,000 to GBP374,000 although he was only with the company for nine months in the 2000-01 financial year. BNFL's chairman Hugh Collum, the chairman, received GBP171,000 compared with GBP170,000 the previous year. The daily reported that BNFl's report and accounts seem to disclose that the company does not meet the highest standard of corporate governance despite being a government-owned company. BIOCOMPATIBLES INTERNATIONAL: Notice of Major Interest in Shares ---------------------------------------------------------------- Biocompatibles International plc was advised on August 5 that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a notifiable interest in 1,763,733 Ordinary 16 1/9p shares representing 3.97% of its issued ordinary share capital. BIOCOMPATIBLES INTERNATIONAL: Notice of Major Interest in Shares ---------------------------------------------------------------- On 5 August 2002, J O Hambro Capital Management Limited, ORYX International Growth Fund Limited and North Atlantic Smaller Companies Investment Trust PLC submitted a concert party notification, pursuant to Section 204 of the Companies Act 1985. At that time, JOHCM confirmed that it was interested in 2,852,403 Ordinary 16 1/9p shares of Biocompatibles International Plc, whilst NASCIT confirmed that it was interested in 1,019,999 shares, and ORYX confirmed its interest in 350,000 shares. These amounts represent 6.43%, 2.30% and 0.79% of the total issued share capital of the Company respectively. These shares are held as follows: HSBC Global Custody London Limited 350,000 Bank of New York Nominees Limited 1,019,999 Nutraco Nominees Limited 300,000 Goldman Sachs International TNA 1,000,000 Goldman Sachs International THO 500,000 Goldman Sachs International THT 125,000 Goldman Sachs International TEU 927,403 TOTAL 4,222,402 shares = 9.52% CLUBHAUS PLC: Notification of Major Interest in Shares ----------------------------------------------------- The Company was notified on 5 August 2002 that The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc is interested in 54,876,850 ordinary shares in the Company, representing 6.00% of the issued share capital. COMPASS GROUP: Issues Notice of Major Interest in Shares -------------------------------------------------------- Name of company: Compass Group Plc Name of Shareholder Having A Major Interest: Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Class of security: ordinary shares of 10 pence each Date of transaction: on or before 25 July 2002 Date company informed: August 2 2002 Total holding following this notification: 67,249,609 Total percentage holding of issued class following this notification: 3.01% Name of contact and telephone number for queries: Andrew V Derham Telephone: 01932 573159 Date of Notification: August 5 2002 Letter To Compass Group Plc Dated July 29,2002 We hereby notify you in fulfillment of the obligation of disclosure imposed by the provisions of Sections 198 to 202 of the Companies Act (1985), that: (a) As at July 25 2002, Artisan Partners Limited Partnership was interested for the purposes of the Act in 67,249,609 ordinary shares of 10 pence each comprised in the relevant share capital, as defined in section 198(2) of the Act, of Compass Group plc; (b) The registered holders of the Relevant Shares are: Nominee Shares State Street Nominees Limited 50,826,686 Boston Safe 3,642,803 BT Globenet Nominees Limited 7,203,775 Northern Trust Nominees Ltd. 2,491,637 Chase Nominees Ltd. 992,808 The Bank of New York Nominees Limited 1,820,400 Barnett & Co. 271,500 (c) Artisan Partners Limited Partnership is interested in the Relevant Shares by virtue of Section 208(4)(b) of the Act; and (d) This notification is given on behalf of Artisan Partners Limited Partnership and its registered address is as stated at the foot of this letter. CONSIGNIA: Faces Danger From TPG ---------------------------------- Consignia faces threat from the Dutch postal group TPG following TPG's unveiling of strong second-quarter profits and promising to launch a full offensive on the UK market from next April, a report from the Guardian said. TPG, which threw merger talks with Consignia this year, disclosed that it had no interest in reviving those contacts and was fully focused on head-to-head competition when liberalisation allowed it, the daily reported. It is said that Consignia's failure to privatize had left it with "significant issues." TPG last week applied for an interim license to trial various services in Britain. It has bought a couple of specialist firms such as Lason and Circular Distribution and will fill in the gaps to be ready for 2003. The Dutch mail, express and logistics group - which was privatised 14 years ago - reported earnings of EUR305m (œ203 m) for the second quarter compared with EUR278m for the same period 12 months earlier. Financial analysts welcomed the results. Analysts have been recently having doubts since European rival Deutsche Post of Germany cut its profit target last week while Consignia has been losing more than GBP1.5 million a day, the daily said. COOKSON: Shareholders Approve GBP277.5 MM Rights Issue -------------------------------------------------------- Cookson's GBP277.5 million rights issue gets the kind of approval rating from shareholders yesterday, a report from the Financial Times said. Citing Cookson's chairman Sir Bryan Nicholson, the daily said that most of the shareholders voted for both resolutions - to subdivide the embattled industrial materials group's existing 50p shares into 1p ordinaries and 49p deferred shares, and to authorise the issue of 1.16 billion new 1p shares. Some shareholders who questioned the timing of the issue and the appropriateness of directors receiving bonuses for 2001 -- a time when the company needed fresh cash - said they voted for the resolutions, the daily reported. Sir Bryan had argued that the time was right for a rights issue. Cookson, which has a net debt of GBP750 million, accumulated a GBP1 billion shopping spree during the late 1990s. It wants to use all the proceeds to pay off a GBP450 million syndicated loan facility of which it has already drawn down about GBP300 million. The company again insisted it was far from breaching any covenants, the paper said. Some institutional shareholders did not comment on whether they would actually take up the shares they are entitled to by August 28. The company disclosed last week that 36% of shareholders had given informal non-binding undertakings to participate in the issue, the daily reported. It is said that if the stock market continues to suffer and Cookson shares would plunge below the rights issue price of 25p, investors could demand a larger discount to support the cash call, the paper said. Cookson shares fell 2-1/2p on Monday to 26%. Trading in the nil-paid new shares starts on Tuesday. RAILTRACK: Spent 10% of Budget in Consultancy Fees in 2001 ---------------------------------------------------------- The collapsed U.K. railway company, Railtrack Plc had spent 10% of its budget in a "consultancy-spending spree" in 2001, said press reports, according to BBC said. Railtrack which was forced into administration by the government last October, paid out between GBP225 million and GBP350 million to outside experts, the news agency reported. Most of the cash is said to have been given to former railway workers who were re-hired on external contracts as project managers and engineering experts, the BBC said. The current development is said to probably to spark investor anger over Railtrack's demise, which left many of the company's shareholders out of pocket, the news agency said. Railtrack was put into administration last October after it emerged that the company was experiencing a cash crunch. This move had angered Railtrack shareholders, who debated that the company had strong underlying performance. Since then, several shareholders have accepted a government compensation offer worth GBP2.55 per share - down from their peak value of about GBp17, the news outfit said. It is reported that the not-for-profit company Network Rail will substitute Railtrack. TELEWEST COMMUNICATIONS: Carlton Plans to Bid on SMG Shares ---------------------------------------------------------- Carlton Communications intends to offer GBP55 million on Telewest's GBP55 million SMG holding, a report on the Scotsman says. The company plans to bid on Telewest's 17% stake in SMG, Carlton executives revealed over the weekend. According to Telewest's newly appointed chief executive, Charles Burdick, the "non core" SMG stake is likely to be divested in the company's effort to cut its GBP5.3 billion liabilities. This report comes as news that proposals in the government's draft communications bill might cut broadcasters' automatic right to have first refusal on renewing their TV franchises. Carlton and ITV rival Granada have been tipped to make a move for Telewest's SMG holding to win control of STV and Grampian TV - SMG's two ITV franchises. Granada has 17 % stake in SMG and may be forced under stockmarket rules to launch a full bid for the company if it increases its holding to more than 29.9 %, making Carlton the City's favourite to mount a bid. The news adds that Carlton has greater advantage under broadcast regulations to take hold of two further ITV franchises without falling foul of competition authorities because it is slightly smaller than Granada. Although the new terms would not come into effect until 2014, the broadcasters claim it would deter investors as it introduces a new element of uncertainty in their future, and damage their investment plans. ITV and Channel Five are both calling for the clause to be revoked before the bill is written into the statute books next year, the reports says. TELEWEST COMMUNICATIONS: Moody's Downgrades Debt Rating to Ca ------------------------------------------------------------- The debt ratings of Telewest plc, Telewest Finance (Jersey) Limited, and Telewest Communications Networks Limited (TCN) received a downgrade from the Moody's Investors Service with a negative outlook for all ratings, a report from Moody's rating actions said. Affected ratings are as follows: Telewest Communications Networks Limited (TCN): Senior secured bank facility rating downgraded from B2 to B3. Telewest Communications plc: Senior implied rating downgraded from Caa1 to Caa2. Senior unsecured issuer rating downgraded from Caa3 to Ca. Senior unsecured bond rating downgraded from Caa3 to Ca. Telewest Finance (Jersey) Limited: Senior unsecured bond rating downgraded from Caa3 to Ca. Moody's said that the "downgrade reflects the increased certainty that Telewest will require some form of balance sheet restructuring and Moody's expected recovery prospects for Telewest's different classes of creditors. On March 15, 2002 Moody's downgraded and changed the outlook (to negative from stable) for Telewest's ratings, reflecting Moody's expectation that it was increasingly likely that the company would be unable to grow into its highly leveraged capital structure." "The company has subsequently announced that it is seeking bank waivers to allow for the company to explore potential debt restructuring alternatives. Given Telewest's relatively limited growth trends (sequential revenue growth for the quarter ending June 30, 2002 was c. 1.8%; c. 4.6% compared to the prior year quarter) in the context of the company's highly leveraged balance sheet and resultant high requisite growth requirements, it now appears almost certain that some form of balance sheet restructuring will be required." Moody's added that "the Ca rating of Telewest's holding company notes reflect the significant impairment likely to be realized by par bondholders given the company's very high debt leverage, on- going funding requirements, and a significant amount of subordination to obligations at both the operating and intermediate holding company levels. The B3 rating of TCN's bank facility reflects its structural seniority (at an intermediate holdco) and the benefits of strong covenant and collateral packages, as well as upstream subsidiary guarantees." Telewest Communications plc, a leading provider of cable communications services in the U.K., is based in London, England. UNIQ PLC: Issues Announcement on Major Interest in Shares --------------------------------------------------------- In accordance with the Companies Act, Uniq Plc was notified on July 31, 2002 that officers of and subsidiaries within the FRM Corp of Boston, U.S., and Fidelity International Limited known collectively as Fidelity Investments have increased their notifiable interest as defined by Sections 198 to 202 of the 1985 Act in the Ordinary 10p shares of the Company, from 11.40% to 12.39%. ************ 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, Larri-Nil Veloso, Maria Lourdes Reyes and Jean Claire Dy, 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 US$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 US$25 each. For subscription information, contact Christopher Beard at 240/629-3300. * * * End of Transmission * * *