/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR

/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/061208.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 Friday, December 8, 2006, Vol. 7, No. 244 Headlines A U S T R I A ABC SAUNA: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 19 ALEKSANDAR KUKIC: Vienna Court Orders Business Shutdown BCM BROKER: Vienna Court Replaces Property Manager COLAJ LLC: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 19 FS-GASTSTATTENBETRIEB: Salzburg Court Orders Business Closure KURTZ BAUPLANUNG: Property Manager Declares Insufficient Assets MOTORCYCLES SPIEGL: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 20 PUCHNER LLC: Linz Court Orders Business Shutdown SAMY TADROS: Property Manager Declares Insufficient Assets C Z E C H R E P U B L I C BORSODCHEM NYRT: Effects Changes in Personnel Structure D E N M A R K NYCO HOLDINGS: Nycomed Names Anders Ullman as New R&D Head NYCO HOLDINGS: S&P Keeps B Credit Rating on CreditWatch Positive F R A N C E ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks IP Solution Deal with China Telecom Units ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks Network Solution Contract with Korea's KT EURO DISNEY: Center-Tainment Fails to Submit Formal Takeover Bid LEAR CORP: Majority of Noteholders Tender Senior Notes MOSAIC COMPANY: Fitch Affirms BB- Issuer Default Rating SOCIETE FONCIERE: S&P Cuts Ratings to BB+/B on Stake Purchase G E R M A N Y AUTOHAUS PLINKE: Claims Registration Ends December 18 BAUPLANUNGSBUERO OBERMEIER: Claims Registration Ends Dec. 11 BENQ CORP: Siemens Secures Job Market for BenQ Mobile Employees BENQ CORP: Posts NT$11.9 Billion Sales for November 2006 BSS BERATUNG: Claims Registration Ends December 12 CAS GMBH: Claims Registration Ends December 18 CENTRO INTERNATIONALER: Claims Registration Ends December 13 GOLDEN FLOWERS: Claims Registration Ends December 12 HARTSTEINWERKE WILLI: Claims Registration Ends Dec. 11 HEINING & MUELLER: Claims Registration Ends December 18 HELMUT WACHENFELD: Claims Registration Ends December 12 LEAR CORP: Majority of Noteholders Tender Senior Notes VOLKSWAGEN AG: Rupert Stadler Succeeds Dr. Winterkorn at Audi H U N G A R Y BORSODCHEM NYRT: Effects Changes in Personnel Structure I R E L A N D SCOTTISH RE: Completes Buyback of US$115 Million Senior Notes I T A L Y PARMALAT: Court Permits Citibank to Pursue Actions from Dec. 29 REVLON CONSUMER: Plans to Increase Term Loan to US$840 Million REVLON CONSUMER: S&P Junks US$840-Mln Senior Secured Term Loan REVLON INC: To Launch US$100-Million Additional Share Issue UNIPOL BANCA: Fitch Keeps Individual Rating at C WIND ACQUISITION: Moody's Says Loan Does Not Affect Ba3 Rating K A Z A K H S T A N AKTOBE LEASING: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 12, 2007 AKTOBE-SERVICE STROY: Claims Registration Ends Jan. 19, 2007 ALMATY TRANS: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 12, 2007 ASAR LLP: Proof of Claim Deadline Slated for Jan. 12, 2007 BERKUL LLP: Creditors Must File Claims by Jan. 16, 2007 CASPIY TELECOM: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 16, 2007 CHANCE-T LLP: Creditors Must File Claims by Jan. 12, 2007 MERKE SHEKER: Jambyl Court Opens Bankruptcy Proceedings MURAGER LLP: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 16, 2007 TRANS-CASPIAN TRADING: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 16, 2007 K Y R G Y Z S T A N LAND CAPITAL: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 19, 2007 RUSSKY DOM: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 19, 2007 L I T H U A N I A SEB VILNIAUS: Fitch Affirms Individual Rating at C N E T H E R L A N D S ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks IP Solution Deal with China Telecom Units ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks Network Solution Contract with Korea's KT R O M A N I A BANCA TRANSILVANIA: Fitch Keeps Issuer Default Rating at BB- R U S S I A ALFA-BANK: Eyes US$2-Billion Investment in Indonesia ALFA BANK: Forms PatriotCapital with NPO OboronReformProekt BRASOVSKAYA FURNITURE: Court Names Y. Kayturov to Manage Assets EXPERIENCE CJSC: Court Names I. Gorn as Insolvency Manager GALANT OJSC: Court Names D. Ivanov as Insolvency Manager KRASNYE GORKI: Samara Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for Jan. 16 KUMINSKAYA TIMBER: Court Names Y. Kostylev as Insolvency Manager KUZNETSK-MEAT CJSC: Court Names A. Sobitnyuk to Manage Assets MOSAIC COMPANY: Fitch Affirms BB- Issuer Default Rating NESTEROVSKIY SPIRIT: Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for Jan. 30 OLENINSKIY DIARY: Court Names A. Lebedev as Insolvency Manager ORGERSBANK: Fitch Keeps B- Default Rating on Watch Positive SEVERSTAL OAO: Hikes Authorized Capital Following Share Issue SOUTHERN TELECOM: Ends Term of Two Management Board Members STERLING GROUP: Moscow Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for May 15 TATNEFT OAO: Earns RUR45 Billion for January-October 2006 TORZHOKSKAYA GARMENT: Court Names A. Glebova to Manage Assets UZH-URAL-LEATHER: Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for January 18 UZLOVSKAYA GARMENT: Court Names N. Pavlov as Insolvency Manager VOLGOGRADSKIY FACTORY: Court Names M. Voloshkin to Manage Assets TULSKIYE ENGINEERING: Court Names M. Voloshkin to Manage Assets TSON OJSC: Asset Sale Slated for December 21 S W I T Z E R L A N D CCR CLASSIC: St. Gallen Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings EURO DISNEY: Center-Tainment Fails to Submit Formal Takeover Bid GOLDSTEIN ROSENBERG: St. Gallen Court Starts Bankruptcy Process HC ZENTRALSCHWEIZ: Court Suspends Bankruptcy Proceedings HEKA HANDELS: Lucerne Court Suspends Bankruptcy Proceedings JASARI KUNSTSTOFFE: Liestal Court Suspends Bankruptcy Process MADER TREUHAND: St. Gallen Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings OETTERLI JSC: Lucerne Court Closes Bankruptcy Proceedings RUEDI BACHMANN: March Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings TELOS HOLDING: Lucerne Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings X-PHONE LLC: Lucerne Court Suspends Bankruptcy Proceedings T U R K E Y HD CAPITAL: Fitch Assigns B Rating on EUR50-Million Bond U K R A I N E ALFA-BANK: Eyes US$2-Billion Investment in Indonesia ALFA BANK: Forms PatriotCapital with NPO OboronReformProekt U N I T E D K I N G D O M ALLIED CONCRETE: Nominates Gary Stones as Liquidator BLEEP NORTH: Nominates Liquidator from T H Associates CONTEMPORARY FURNISHINGS: Joint Liquidators Take Over Operations CONVERGENCE GROUP: Hires Administrators from Geoffrey Martin CRYSTAL CLEAR: Appoints Joint Liquidators from Deloitte & Touche DISCOUNT AUTOPARTS: Brings In Liquidators from Grant Thornton ELITE SECURITY: Brings In Hurst Morrison to Administer Assets EMPOWER INTERACTIVE: Brings In Grant Thornton as Administrators EUROPEAN GOLF: Appoints BDO Stoy to Administer Assets FORD MOTOR: Fitch Lowers Ratings to B-/RR5 on Upsized Financings GLYN WEBB: Names Joint Administrators from Milner Boardman J W LEWIS: Creditors Confirm Voluntary Liquidation K.C. COMPONENTS: Creditors Confirm Liquidator's Appointment LUTON RECRUITMENT: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 2, 2007 NASDAQ STOCK: London Mayor Calls for Probe Into LSE Takeover PROMINENT CMBS: Fitch Affirms BB Rating on GBP34.8-Million Notes RAFIQUES LIMITED: Hires Liquidators from Recovery hjs REFCO INC: Submits Modified First Amended Chapter 11 Plan REVLON CONSUMER: Plans to Increase Term Loan to US$840 Million REVLON CONSUMER: S&P Junks US$840-Mln Senior Secured Term Loan REVLON INC: To Launch US$100-Million Additional Share Issue SANDWELL 1: Fitch Affirms BB Rating on GBP5-Mln Class E Notes SANDWELL 2: Fitch Keeps BB Rating on GBP14-Million Class E Notes SCOTTISH RE: Completes Buyback of US$115 Million Senior Notes SEVERSTAL OAO: Hikes Authorized Capital Following Share Issue SKILL 2000: Nominates Joint Liquidators from Abbott Fielding TRAC PROPERTIES: Nominates Liquidator from Stones & Co. VENTURE COBURG: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 15 W.H. WILSON: Brings In Administrators from Kroll WINSFORD FABRICATIONS: Taps Administrators from Royce Peeling WOODEN HEART: Creditors Ratify Voluntary Liquidation ZEROPLUS U.K.: Creditors Confirm Liquidators' Appointment * BOOK REVIEW: A Treatise on the Right of Property in Tide Waters ********* ============= A U S T R I A ============= ABC SAUNA: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 19 ---------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC ABC Sauna Betriebs (FN 234741h) are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 11:00 a.m. on Dec. 19 to consider the adoption of the rule by revision and accountability. The creditors' meeting will be held at: The Trade Court of Vienna Room 1707 Vienna, Austria Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Oct. 19 (Bankr. Case No. 2 S 152/06z). Christian Bachmann serves as the court-appointed property manager of the bankrupt estate. Eva-Maria Bachmann-Lang represents Dr. Bachmann in the bankruptcy proceedings. The property manager and his representative can be reached at: Dr. Christian Bachmann c/o Dr. Eva-Maria Bachmann-Lang Opernring 8 1010 Vienna, Austria Tel: 512 87 01 Fax: 513 82 50 E-mail: bachmann.rae@aon.at ALEKSANDAR KUKIC: Vienna Court Orders Business Shutdown ------------------------------------------------------- The Trade Court of Vienna entered Oct. 13 an order shutting down the business of LLC Aleksandar Kukic (FN 168510i). Court- appointed property manager Herbert Hochegger recommended the business shutdown after determining that the continuing operations would reduce the value of the estate. The property manager can be reached at: Dr. Herbert Hochegger c/o Dr. Bernhard Eder Brucknerstrasse 4/5 1040 Vienna, Austria Tel: 505 78 61 Fax: 505 78 61-9 E-mail: office@hoch.co.at Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Sept. 28 (Bankr. Case No. 3 S 133/06p). Bernhard Eder represents Dr. Hochegger in the bankruptcy proceedings. BCM BROKER: Vienna Court Replaces Property Manager -------------------------------------------------- The Trade Court of Vienna dismissed Oct. 18 Dr. Alexander Gruber from his position as property manager of LLC BCM Broker (FN 244632d). Andreas Alzinger will replace Dr. Gruber as property manager. The new property manager can be reached at: Dr. Andreas Alzinger Karntner Ring 12 1010 Vienna, Austria Tel: 516 20 Fax: 512 44 55 E-mail: a.alzinger@baierlambert.com Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Oct. 17 (Bankr. Case No. 2 S 151/06b). COLAJ LLC: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 19 ---------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC COLAJ (FN 241267f) are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 10:40 a.m. on Dec. 19 to consider the adoption of the rule by revision and accountability. The creditors' meeting will be held at: The Trade Court of Vienna Room 1707 Vienna, Austria Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Oct. 13 (Bankr. Case No. 2 S 150/06f). Christiane Pirker serves as the court-appointed property manager of the bankrupt estate. The property manager can be reached at: Dr. Christiane Pirker Hasenhutgasse 9 Haus 3 1120 Vienna, Austria Tel: 817 57 57 Fax: 817 57 55 17 E-mail: Dr.Christiane.Pirker@chello.at FS-GASTSTATTENBETRIEB: Salzburg Court Orders Business Closure ------------------------------------------------------------- The Land Court of Salzburg entered Oct. 19 an order closing the business of LLC FS-Gaststattenbetrieb (FN 154151v). Court- appointed property manager Michael Pallauf recommended the business closure after determining that the continuing operations would reduce the value of the estate. The property manager can be reached at: Dr. Michael Pallauf Petersbrunstr. 13 5020 Salzburg, Austria Tel: 0662-841202 Fax: 0662-841202-50 E-mail: officesalzburg@aaa-law.at Headquartered in Salzburg, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Oct. 5 (Bankr. Case No. 23 S 72/06t). KURTZ BAUPLANUNG: Property Manager Declares Insufficient Assets --------------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Norbert Scherbaum, the court-appointed property manager for LLC Kurtz Bauplanung (FN 191468x), declared Oct. 19 that the Debtor's property is insufficient to cover creditors' claim. The Land Court of Grazed is yet to rule on the property manager's claim. Headquartered in Graz, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Aug. 31 (Bankr. Case No. 26 S 84/06g). The property manager can be reached at: Dr. Norbert Scherbaum Scherbaum/Seebacher Rechtsanwalte Einspinnergasse 3 2nd Floor 8010 Graz, Austria Tel: 0316/832460 Fax: 0316/832460-20 E-mail: office@scherbaum-seebacher.at MOTORCYCLES SPIEGL: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 20 ------------------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by KEG Motorcycles Spiegl (FN 274967p) are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 20 to consider the adoption of the rule by revision and accountability. The creditors' meeting will be held at: The Land Court of Krems an der Donau Hall A 2nd Floor Krems an der Donau, Austria Headquartered in Salzburg, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Oct. 19 (Bankr. Case No. 9 S 53/06a). Martina Withoff serves as the court-appointed property manager of the bankrupt estate. The property manager can be reached at: Dr. Martina Withoff Hauptplatz 5 3910 Zwettl, Austria Tel: 02822/52417 Fax: 02822/52417-4 E-mail: dr.withoff@nextra.at PUCHNER LLC: Linz Court Orders Business Shutdown ------------------------------------------------ The Land Court of Linz entered Oct. 18 an order shutting down the business of LLC Puchner (FN 246313a). Court-appointed property manager Sigrun Teufer - Peyrl recommended the business shutdown after determining that the continuing operations would reduce the value of the estate. The property manager can be reached at: Mag. Sigrun Teufer - Peyrl c/o Dr. Gunter Peyrl Pfarrgasse 20 4240 Freistadt, Austria Tel: 07942/ 7 51 51 Fax: 07942/ 7 51 51-9 E-mail: ra.peyrl@epnet.at Headquartered in Ried in der Riedmark, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Oct. 3 (Bankr. Case No. 12 S 82/06f). Gunter Peyrl represents Mag. Teufer - Peyrl in the bankruptcy proceedings. SAMY TADROS: Property Manager Declares Insufficient Assets ---------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Thomas Engelhart, the court-appointed property manager for KEG Samy Tadros Mesiha (FN 191888p), declared Oct. 18 that the Debtor's property is insufficient to cover creditors' claim. The Trade Court of Vienna declared business shutdown on the same day. Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Aug. 18 (Bankr. Case No. 45 S 56/06y). Clemens Richter represents Dr. Engelhart in the bankruptcy proceedings. The property manager can be reached at: Dr. Thomas Engelhart c/o Mag. Clemens Richter Esteplatz 4 1030 Vienna, Austria Tel: 712 33 30 Fax: 712 33 30 30 E-mail: kanzlei@engelhart.at =========================== C Z E C H R E P U B L I C =========================== BORSODCHEM NYRT: Effects Changes in Personnel Structure ------------------------------------------------------- BorsodChem Nyrt. informs its investors and other participants of the capital markets that in line with the goals of its Strategy 2007-2012, the following organizational and personnel changes take place with immediate effect at BorsodChem Nyrt. and its subsidiary BC-MCHZ s.r.o, Ostrava, Czech Republic: * Bela S. Varga has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of BC-MCHZ and replaces Alexander Palffy who decided to leave the company. * Chief Financial Officer Dr Janos Illessy will take additional corporate-wide responsibilities of Human Resources, Legal, Communications and Internal Audit affairs. * Dr. Zoltan Gazdik has been appointed as Finance & IT Director of BorsodChem Nyrt. and will take responsibility of all Finance and IT matters of BorsodChem Group. About BorsodChem Headquartered in Kazincbarcika, Hungary, BorsodChem Nyrt. -- http://www.borsodchem.hu/-- produces chlorine, chloric alkali, hydrochloric acid, caustic lye and PVC resins, and additives for the plastic and rubber industries. The Company exports its products mainly to Western Europe. The group's EBITDA for 2005 amounted to HUF27.0 billion, 31.7% higher than HUF20.5 billion in 2004. BorsodChem's net profit was down 17.7%, to HUF14.4 billion in 2005, from HUF17.8 billion a year ago. At Dec. 31, 2005, BorsodChem's balance sheet showed HUF237.9 billion in total assets, HUF98.9 billion in total liabilities and HUF139.02 billion in total equity. * * * BorsodChem's long-term foreign and local issuer credit carry Standard and Poor's BB rating with stable outlook. ============= D E N M A R K ============= NYCO HOLDINGS: Nycomed Names Anders Ullman as New R&D Head ---------------------------------------------------------- Anders Ullman has been appointed to lead Nycomed AS's research and development function upon approval and completion of the deal to purchase Altana Pharma AG. Mr. Ullman has a 16-year track record of medical research and development, most recently as Senior Vice President, Research & Development, at the European biopharma company Biovitrum. "With the head of R&D in place, the Executive Committee for the new Nycomed is set. This gives us the possibility to join ALTANA Pharma and Nycomed together as soon as all the approvals are received from authorities and shareholders," Hakan Bjoerklund, Nycomed CEO disclosed. "I have every confidence that Anders Ullman has what it takes to lead the Nycomed R&D organization so that it fulfils its potential and makes a real difference to the needs of patients and healthcare professionals," Mr. Bjoerklund added. "The new Nycomed will be an outstanding company and I am very excited about this opportunity. I'm looking forward to start work and align the two companies' R&D strategies in the new company next year," expressed Anders Ullman who will lead the new R&D function from Konstanz, Germany. The new Executive Committee will be effective from the closing of the deal to purchase ALTANA Pharma expected by year-end. ALTANA Pharma acquisition On Sept. 21, 2006, Nycomed announced that it had reached an agreement to acquire ALTANA Pharma AG, the pharmaceutical business of German-based international pharmaceuticals and chemical group, ALTANA AG. Closing of the transaction will be subject to the approval of the shareholders of ALTANA AG and necessary antitrust clearances. Pending the final approvals, closing is expected to take place at the turn of the year. The combined group will continue under the Nycomed corporate brand name and will be headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. About Nycomed Headquartered in Roskilde, Denmark, Nycomed AS -- http://www.nycomed.com/-- provides hospital products throughout the region and general practitioner and pharmacy medicines in selected markets. The company employs about 3,500 people throughout Europe and Russia-CIS. Nycomed is privately owned and had a 2005 revenue of EUR747.5 million. NYCO HOLDINGS: S&P Keeps B Credit Rating on CreditWatch Positive ---------------------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said its 'B' long-term corporate credit rating on Denmark-based pharmaceuticals company Nyco Holdings ApS, the holding company of Nycomed AS, remains CreditWatch with positive implications, where it was placed on Sept. 25, 2006, following the announcement that Nycomed will acquire Germany-based pharmaceuticals company Altana Pharma from Altana AG. "We plan to raise the corporate credit rating on Nycomed to 'B+' on completion of the EUR4.2 billion equity- and debt-financed acquisition, subject to satisfactory final documentation and assuming that the transaction is closed successfully without major changes," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Michael Seewald. The outlook will be stable. At the same time, the debt rating on the subordinated notes issued by Nycomed will be raised to 'B-' from 'CCC+'. The acquisition is likely to be completed by year-end 2006 once approval has been received from Altana AG's shareholders and the antitrust authorities. Nycomed has also announced that it will refinance its outstanding debt of about EUR1 billion through the new financing structure. The positive CreditWatch placement reflects the gradual improvement in credit quality of the combined group. Standard & Poor's considers that the transaction will initially have a somewhat positive effect on Nycomed's business risk profile. Altana Pharma will add critical size, business diversity, and a larger R&D platform, despite being over-dependent on one product with a major patent expiry pending. The combined entity will have pro-forma 2006 sales of about EUR3.3 billion, compared with Nycomed's fiscal-year 2005 sales of about EUR750 million. Furthermore, the acquisition will have a positive initial effect on Nycomed's financial risk profile, even if the funding for the transaction includes a large debt component. Owing to Altana's currently strong cash generation capacity, Nycomed's post- acquisition leverage is expected to decrease to a level of about 5.5x of total adjusted debt to EBITDA, down from the current level of 6.5x. After the acquisition, Nycomed's total debt position is likely to increase to about EUR4.5 billion, which compares with about EUR1 billion at the end of the third quarter 2006. "Despite an improved post-transaction business profile, we consider that any upside potential for the rating appears remote, owing to Nycomed's aggressive financial policy track record," said Mr. Seewald. Although the combined entity has the potential to deleverage quickly over the coming years, Nycomed's capital structure will still be highly leveraged post the transaction. =========== F R A N C E =========== ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks IP Solution Deal with China Telecom Units -------------------------------------------------------------- Alcatel Shanghai Bell, Chinese unit of Alcatel-Lucent, has won IP contracts with Shanghai Telecom and Zhejiang Telecom, two subsidiaries of China Telecom. The Alcatel-Lucent IP solution has been selected by Shanghai Telecom and Zhejiang Telecom to optimize their provincial IP metropolitan area networks. Alcatel Shanghai Bell will supply the industry-leading Alcatel- Lucent 7750 Service Router (SR) and 7450 Ethernet Service Switch (ESS) for Shanghai Telecom's VPLS network. With the newly deployed network, 8 million subscribers of Shanghai Telecom will be able to enjoy premium IP services. The network will also be ready to support advanced carrier-grade services such as Ethernet VPN to its end users within the city in the future. For Zhejiang Telecom, Alcatel Shanghai Bell will also deploy the industry-leading Alcatel-Lucent 7750 SR in the cities of Ningbo, Jinhua, Lishui, Quzhou, Jiaxing and Huzhou. Upon completion of the project by the end of 2006, Zhejiang Telecom will be able to deliver voice, data and video services throughout the province as well as reliable, high-speed Internet access over a single IP network infrastructure. "Market demand for broadband services is growing on a day-to-day basis," Zhang Xinjian, General Manager, Zhejiang Telecom, said. "We anticipate that this will result in requirements for a wider variety of new and highly-reliable IP-based data services, so we have deployed Alcatel Shanghai Bell's industry-leading IP solution to equip ourselves to meet current and future broadband service requirements." "Alcatel-LucentIP portfolio is well suited to the rigorous requirements of these densely populated Chinese provinces," said Gerard Dega, President of Alcatel Shanghai Bell. "We are honored that Shanghai Telecom and Zhejiang Telecom selected our solution for their IP metropolitan area network optimization projects, further reinforcing Alcatel-Lucent's strong IP position in China, with deployments in 25 provinces." Presently, all major Chinese operators including China Netcom, China Telecom, China Unicom, and China Mobile have selected the Alcatel-Lucent7750 Service Router to optimize the delivery of high-performance carrier-grade data, voice and video services. Worldwide, more than 150 service providers in 60 countries, including AT&T, BT, Telia Sonera, Telefonica and France Telecom, have selected the Alcatel-Lucent IP portfolio. About Alcatel-Lucent Headquartered in Paris, France, Alcatel-Lucent -- http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/-- provides solutions that enable service providers, enterprises and governments worldwide, to deliver voice, data and video communication services to end users. Through its operations in fixed, mobile and converged broadband networking, Internet protocol (IP) technologies, applications, and services, Alcatel-Lucent offers the end-to-end solutions that enable communications services for people at home, at work and on the move. On Nov. 30, 2006, Alcatel and Lucent Technologies Inc. completed their merger transaction, and began operations as a communication solutions provider under the name Alcatel Lucent on Dec. 1, 2006. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 9, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said that its 'BB' long-term corporate credit rating on France-based Alcatel and its 'B' long-term corporate credit rating on U.S.-based Lucent Technologies Inc. remain on CreditWatch with negative and positive implications, respectively, where they were placed on March 24 on news of the two telecoms equipment makers' plans to merge. The ratings will remain on CreditWatch until completion of the merger and clarification of the ranking and support mechanisms for the various debt classes within the merged group's capital structure. The ratings on the individual debt issues of each company will be clarified at that time. Standard & Poor's 'B' and 'B-1' short-term corporate ratings on Alcatel and Lucent, respectively, are not on CreditWatch and remain unchanged. According to Troubled Company Reporter on April 7, Moody's Investors Service placed Lucent Technologies, Inc.'s B1 corporate family rating, B1 senior unsecured rating, B3 subordinated rating, and B3 trust preferred rating under review for possible upgrade following the company's announcement of a definitive merger agreement with Alcatel. Moody's Investors Service has placed the Ba1 long-term debt ratings of Alcatel S.A. on review for possible downgrade following its definitive agreement to merge with Lucent Technologies (rated B1). The ratings placed on review include Alcatel's senior, unsecured Eurobonds, convertible bonds, Euro- medium term notes, its EUR1.0 billion revolving credit facility and its corporate family rating, all at Ba1 currently. Alcatel's rating for short-term debt was affirmed at Not-Prime. In March 2006, Standard & Poor's Services placed its 'BB' long- term corporate credit rating on France-based telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel on CreditWatch with negative implications. ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks Network Solution Contract with Korea's KT -------------------------------------------------------------- Alcatel-Lucent reveals that KT, the leading fixed incumbent operator in Korea, is deploying Alcatel-Lucent's optical solution to enhance the flexibility and the managed capacity of its transport network. The solution will enable KT to cope with the growing bandwidth needs driven by new and existing broadband services, to address its mobile traffic backhaul requirements and to simplify its operations. KT is deploying Alcatel-Lucent's 1678 Metro Core Connect (MCC), a scalable platform for metro and core applications that integrates data and transport functionality into a single node, thus optimizing network investments. Simplifying network operations, the Alcatel-Lucent 1678 MCC offers a cost-efficient solution to fixed and mobile operators who want to aggregate and consolidate multi-protocol traffic streams from the metro towards the core. Furthermore, its industry-leading density allows service providers to further reduce operating costs. Alcatel-Lucent's solution will be managed by its 1350 management suite, which allows the supervision of packet, TDM and wavelength services. "As data and transport worlds move closer and increase network traffic, we need to accommodate this growth while continuing to focus on network simplification and high-density solutions," said Chul Kim, Vice President of International Network Planning Division, KT. "Alcatel-Lucent offers us the ability to rely on a modular architecture that we can scale for anticipated growth when and where needed." "We are committed to help its customers to operate in a single network for current and new services, with secure, seamless connectivity, while minimizing the total cost of network ownership," said Romano Valussi, Alcatel-Lucent's optical activities. "Our solution offers a solid and cutting-edge platform allowing Korea Telecom to succeed in serving its end- user demands for broadband services." The award further strengthens the long-lasting cooperation in optical networking with KT, who already deployed Alcatel- Lucent's data-aware Optical Multi-Service Node (OMSN) systems and the 1696 Metrospan WDM platform. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 9, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said that its 'BB' long-term corporate credit rating on France-based Alcatel and its 'B' long-term corporate credit rating on U.S.-based Lucent Technologies Inc. remain on CreditWatch with negative and positive implications, respectively, where they were placed on March 24 on news of the two telecoms equipment makers' plans to merge. The ratings will remain on CreditWatch until completion of the merger and clarification of the ranking and support mechanisms for the various debt classes within the merged group's capital structure. The ratings on the individual debt issues of each company will be clarified at that time. Standard & Poor's 'B' and 'B-1' short-term corporate ratings on Alcatel and Lucent, respectively, are not on CreditWatch and remain unchanged. According to Troubled Company Reporter on April 7, Moody's Investors Service placed Lucent Technologies, Inc.'s B1 corporate family rating, B1 senior unsecured rating, B3 subordinated rating, and B3 trust preferred rating under review for possible upgrade following the company's announcement of a definitive merger agreement with Alcatel. Moody's Investors Service has placed the Ba1 long-term debt ratings of Alcatel S.A. on review for possible downgrade following its definitive agreement to merge with Lucent Technologies (rated B1). The ratings placed on review include Alcatel's senior, unsecured Eurobonds, convertible bonds, Euro- medium term notes, its EUR1.0 billion revolving credit facility and its corporate family rating, all at Ba1 currently. Alcatel's rating for short-term debt was affirmed at Not-Prime. In March 2006, Standard & Poor's Services placed its 'BB' long- term corporate credit rating on France-based telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel on CreditWatch with negative implications. EURO DISNEY: Center-Tainment Fails to Submit Formal Takeover Bid ---------------------------------------------------------------- French financial regulatory body Autorite des Marches Financiers told Reuters that Swiss company Center-Tainment AG has failed to submit a formal takeover bid for Euro Disney SCA. The AMF had given Center-Tainment until Dec. 4 to formalize its takeover offer or it will not be allowed to bid for Euro Disney for the next six months. Center-Tainment CEO Ulf H. Werner disclosed at a press conference last week that the company will launch a bid in the coming days when its legal counsel recovers from illness and will notify the AMF of its plans, AFX News Limited relates. According to Bloomberg, Center-Tainment is offering a share swap deal that values Euro Disney shares at 11 cents each. Euro Disney's biggest shareholders include Walt Disney (39.8%) and Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed bin Talal (10%). About the Company Headquartered in France, Euro Disney S.C.A. -- http://www.eurodisney.com/-- and its subsidiaries operate the Disneyland Resort Paris, which includes Disneyland Park, Walt Disney Studios Park, seven themed hotels with approximately 5,800 rooms (excluding 2,074 additional third party rooms located on the site), two convention centers, Disney Village, a dining, shopping and entertainment center, and a 27-hole golf facility. The Group's operating activities also include the management and development of the 2,000-hectare site, which currently includes approximately 1,000 hectares of undeveloped land. * * * Delisting Market trends and changes in the regulatory environment, combined with the high cost of maintaining separate listings relative to historical trading volumes, have led to the Company's decision to cancel its share listings on the London Stock Exchange and Euronext Brussels. Following the cancellation of the listings, investors will still be able to trade in the Company's shares on Euronext Paris. In February 2005, the Company implemented a comprehensive restructuring of the Group's financial obligations. The restructuring included amendments to the Group's principal financing agreements as well as its license and management agreements with The Walt Disney Company; changes to the Group's organizational structure; and a EUR253.3 million share capital increase. Euro Disney SCA incurred consecutive net losses for the last five years in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The Company reported net losses of EUR46.5 million in 2005, EUR77.5 million in 2004, EUR54.4 million in 2003, EUR67.3 million in 2002, and EUR50.6 million in 2001. Management expects that even under its growth assumptions, the Group will incur a significant aggregate amount of net losses over the next several fiscal years. LEAR CORP: Majority of Noteholders Tender Senior Notes ------------------------------------------------------ Lear Corp. disclosed the results to date of its tender offer commenced Nov. 21, 2006, for up to US$850 million aggregate principal amount of its 8.125% senior notes due 2008, of which around EUR237 million are outstanding, and its 8.11% senior notes due 2009, of which around US$593 million are outstanding. The early tender date with respect to the notes has expired. As of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on Dec. 5, 2006, holders of around EUR170.3 million in aggregate principal amount of 2008 notes and around US$543.2 million in aggregate principal amount of 2009 notes had tendered their notes pursuant to the offer. This represents around 72% and 92% of the outstanding principal amount of 2008 notes and 2009 notes, respectively. Rights to withdraw tendered notes terminated at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on Dec. 5, 2006. Holders of the 2008 notes who delivered valid tenders by the early tender date and whose notes are accepted for payment will receive the total consideration of EUR1,045 per EUR1,000 principal amount at maturity plus accrued interest. The payment date for the 2008 notes tendered as of the early tender date will occur promptly following the acceptance of such tenders, which is currently expected to occur on Dec. 6, 2006. Lear also announced that all holders whose 2009 notes are validly tendered on or prior to the expiration date will be eligible to receive the total consideration offered pursuant to the tender offer. Accordingly, all holders whose 2009 notes are validly tendered on or prior to the expiration date, including notes validly tendered after the early tender date of Dec. 5, 2006, will be eligible to receive a purchase price of US$1,055 per US$1,000 principal amount at maturity for the 2009 notes. The tender offer will expire at midnight, New York City time, on Dec. 19, 2006, unless extended. The purchase price for any 2008 notes validly tendered after Dec. 5, 2006 and prior to the expiration of the tender offer is EUR1,025 per EUR1,000 principal amount at maturity plus accrued interest. The tender offer for the 2009 notes will be in an aggregate amount such that the aggregate principal amount of 2008 notes and 2009 notes purchased in the tender offer will not exceed an aggregate maximum tender offer amount of US$850 million. All notes purchased in the tender offer will be retired upon consummation of the tender offer. The consummation of the tender offer is conditioned upon certain customary closing conditions. If any of the conditions are not satisfied, Lear is not obligated to accept for payment, purchase or pay for, or may delay the acceptance for payment of, any tendered notes, and may terminate the tender offer. Subject to applicable law, Lear may waive any condition applicable to the tender offer and extend or otherwise amend the tender offer. Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking is the dealer manager for the tender offer. Global Bondholder Services Corporation is acting as information agent and the depositary. The Company has also retained Dexia Banque Internationale a Luxembourg to act as depositary for the 2008 notes. About the Company Southfield, Mich.-based Lear Corp. (NYSE: LEA) -- http://www.lear.com/-- is a global supplier of automotive interior systems and components. Lear provides complete seat systems, electronic products, electrical distribution systems, and other interior products. Lear also operates in Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Honduras, Hungary, India. Italy, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey and Venezuela. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 23, Moody's Investors Service raised Lear Corp.'s rating outlook to stable from negative and affirmed all other Lear ratings. In a TCR-Europe report on Nov. 22, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'B-' ratings to Lear Corp.'s US$300 million senior notes due 2013 and its US$400 million senior notes due 2016. Lear's 'B+' corporate credit and other ratings were affirmed. The outlook is negative. Moody's Investors Service has assigned a B3, LGD4, 61% rating to Lear Corporation's new offering of US$700 million of unsecured notes. At the same time, Moody's affirmed Lear's Corporate Family Rating of B2, Speculative Grade Liquidity rating of SGL-2 and negative outlook. All other long-term ratings are unchanged. MOSAIC COMPANY: Fitch Affirms BB- Issuer Default Rating ------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings affirmed and removed The Mosaic Company from Rating Watch Evolving, where it was originally placed on July 26 of this year. Fitch has also assigned ratings to new issues following Mosaic's refinancing completed late last week. Fitch's rating actions affect around US$2.5 billion of outstanding debt, including the undrawn US$450 million revolving credit facility and US$1.06 billion of term debt. The Rating Outlook is Stable. Fitch affirms the following ratings: The Mosaic Company -- Issuer Default Rating at BB-; and -- Senior secured revolver rating at BB+. Mosaic Global Holdings -- IDR at BB-; -- Senior unsecured notes at BB; and -- Senior unsecured notes and debentures at BB-. Phosphate Acquisition Partnership LP -- IDR at BB-; and -- Senior secured note rating at BB-. Fitch has withdrawn Mosaic Global Holdings senior secured term loan rating at BB+. Fitch has assigned: The Mosaic Company -- Senior secured term loans rating BB+; and -- Senior unsecured notes rating BB. Mosaic Colonsay ULC -- IDR BB-; and -- Senior secured term loan rating BB+. An IDR of BB- for Mosaic and its issuing subsidiaries reflects the company's good market positions in the global potash and phosphate markets, and its improving earnings profile. The ratings continue to be tempered by Mosaic's high debt level and modest cash flow. Fitch anticipates an improvement in cash flow over the next year as changes to the phosphate cost structure become apparent; however, the amount of cash flow improvement remains uncertain. Additionally, market dynamics favor an increase in domestic fertilizer demand next spring while tightening global potash supply could support higher pricing. Fitch forecasts that Mosaic's operating EBITDA-to-gross interest expense could remain just under 4 times while total debt-to- operating EBITDA declines to 3.5x for its fiscal year 2007 with modest earnings improvement, stronger cash flow and some debt reduction. The BB+ rating on Mosaic's proposed senior secured term loans reflects the superior collateral coverage. The rating is equal to that of Mosaic's existing revolver, which would share in the same collateral package. The BB rating on Mosaic's new 7.375% senior notes due 2014 and 7.625% senior notes due 2016 is one notch higher that the IDR of BB- due primarily to the notes' guarantees from domestic and certain foreign subsidiaries. The rating also reflects the new notes senior unsecured position relative to a substantial amount of senior secured debt upon the closing of the refinancing. In a worst case scenario, senior secured debt could be as high as US$1.5 billion, assuming a fully drawn revolver, compared to around US$1.4 billion of unsecured debt. The IDR of BB- at Mosaic Colonsay reflects its position as a wholly owned subsidiary of Mosaic. The BB+ rating on Mosaic Colonsay's existing term loan reflects its collateral position. This term loan would share the credit facility collateral with the revolver and new term loans at parent Mosaic. The Stable Rating Outlook reflects Fitch's expectation for modest improvement in earnings and cash flow, which will allow for the start of debt reduction over the next twelve months. Improving global fertilizer industry dynamics and anticipated cost improvements in Mosaic's phosphate business support Fitch's view on improving cash flow and the likelihood of modest debt reduction near term. The Mosaic Company is one of the largest global suppliers of phosphate and potash fertilizers. Mosaic earned around US$655.9 million in EBITDA on US$5.2 billion in revenue LTM Aug. 31, 2006; the company had US$2.6 billion in debt at that time. SOCIETE FONCIERE: S&P Cuts Ratings to BB+/B on Stake Purchase ------------------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered its long- and short- term corporate credit ratings on Societe Fonciere Lyonnaise S.A., one of the largest listed office property-investment companies in France, to 'BB+/B' from 'BBB-/A-3', respectively. At the same time, the short-term rating was removed from CreditWatch with negative implications, where it had been placed on June 9, 2006. The long-term rating remains on CreditWatch with negative implications. "The downgrade follows Spanish property company Grupo Inmocaral S.A.'s acquisition of a 93.4% stake in Inmobiliaria Colonial, which holds 79% of SFL, and Inmocaral's announced agreement to buy 15.07% of Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas SA from Acciona SA," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Xavier Buffon. The cost to acquire Inmobiliaria Colonial will be about EUR3.5 billion, with 57% debt financed and the remainder financed by part of the group's successful EUR2.7 billion capital increase. The purchase price for the second acquisition will total EUR1.534 billion. "The CreditWatch status reflects Inmocaral's very aggressive strategy and highly leveraged financial profile," added Mr. Buffon. "Credit metrics are below levels required for an investment-grade rating." Standard & Poor's expects to resolve the CreditWatch status within the next few months, after its has more visibility regarding future credit metrics, as well as an update on the new combined group's business and financial strategy. ============= G E R M A N Y ============= AUTOHAUS PLINKE: Claims Registration Ends December 18 ----------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Autohaus Plinke GmbH have until Dec. 18 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Axel Kampmann. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:00 a.m. on Jan. 22, 2007, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Arnsberg Meeting Room 328 Eichholzstr. 4 59821 Arnsberg, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Arnsberg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Autohaus Plinke GmbH on Nov. 1. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: Autohaus Plinke GmbH Elfser Way 3-4 59494 Soest, Germany Attn: Ralf Otto Plinke, Manager Kuemken 5 59494 Soest, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Dr. Axel Kampmann Bronnerstrasse 7 44141 Dortmund, Germany BAUPLANUNGSBUERO OBERMEIER: Claims Registration Ends Dec. 11 ------------------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Bauplanungsbuero Obermeier GmbH have until Dec. 11 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Peter May. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 8:00 a.m. on Dec. 21, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Landshut Meeting Room 8/I Insolvency Court Maximilianstrasse 22-24 Landshut, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Landshut opened bankruptcy proceedings against Bauplanungsbuero Obermeier GmbH on Oct. 26. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: Bauplanungsbuero Obermeier GmbH Koernerstr. 25 09130 Chemnitz, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Dr. Peter May Bachstr. 6 84036 Landshut, Germany Tel: 0871/94321-0 Fax: 0871/9432150 BENQ CORP: Siemens Secures Job Market for BenQ Mobile Employees --------------------------------------------------------------- Siemens AG, IG Metall and the Siemens Central Works Council have succeeded in securing the financing of job placement companies for employees affected by the bankruptcy of BenQ Mobile GmbH &Co. OHG and Inservio GmbH. Together with the bankruptcy administrator of BenQ Mobile, Dr. Martin Prager, Siemens had already developed a plan to make additional funds available to job placement companies. Now, with the commitment of the other "roundtable" parties, the financing of the job placement companies from Jan. 1, 2007, to the end of 2007 is secure. "The primary goal of the two job placement companies in Munich and in Kamp-Lintfort is to place BenQ Mobile employees in the job market. If former BenQ Mobile employees in the job placement companies have not found a job by Jan. 1, 2008, Siemens will find ways to alleviate severe financial need," said Dr. J�rgen Radomski, head of Corporate Personnel of Siemens AG. In an act of solidarity with its former workforce, Siemens had set up a EUR35 million aid fund for BenQ Mobile employees immediately after BenQ Mobile Germany filed for bankruptcy. Siemens is making EUR25 million of this aid fund available to the job placement companies. An additional EUR10 million are earmarked for supporting employees in financial difficulties. Together with the provisional bankruptcy administrator, Siemens had already developed a plan at the end of October intended to secure the financing and the results of job placement companies. The plan calls for making EUR24 million available to job placement companies in addition to the aid fund and to provide access to an additional EUR12 million, both amounts currently bound in escrow accounts in conjunction with receivables Siemens AG owes BenQ OHG. In addition to this support, Siemens has opened the internal human resources market to former BenQ Mobile employees and secured the continuation of training for 88 trainees. So far, around 80 BenQ Mobile employees have been placed or offered jobs via the so-called Siemens job exchange. In the past weeks, about 420 jobseekers have been scheduled for job interviews with representatives of Siemens Groups. The goal of these job interviews is to offer BenQ Mobile employees full-time positions. Siemens hopes to successfully place further former BenQ employees in the near future. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Sept. 29, the board of directors of BenQ Corp. decided to discontinue capital injection into BenQ Mobile in order to stem unsustainable losses in the latter's operations. Subsequently it filed an insolvency petition for the company's German mobile phone unit. Siemens has faced criticisms from German politicians and its own employees for irresponsibility over the sale of the business to BenQ, according to published reports. Siemens had said that its previous decision to sell its mobile phone activities to BenQ was the solution with the greatest employee benefits. According to Siemens, the Taiwanese company assured of its intentions to operate and expand the German locations in the future and presented a credible plan for accomplishing this. Siemens said it contributed some 600 patent families, allowed BenQ to use its brand name for five years and provided substantial financial support for a successful launch. About Siemens Siemens (Berlin and Munich) -- http://www.siemens.com/-- is a global powerhouse in electrical engineering and electronics. The company has around 461,000 employees working to develop and manufacture products, design and install complex systems and projects, and tailor a wide range of services for individual requirements. Siemens provides innovative technologies and comprehensive know-how to benefit customers in 190 countries. Founded more than 155 years ago, the company focuses on the areas of Information and Communications, Automation and Control, Power, Transportation, Medical, and Lighting. In fiscal 2005 (ended September 30), Siemens had sales from continuing operations of EUR75.4 billion and net income of EUR3.058 billion. About BenQ Headquartered in Taiwan, Republic of China, BenQ Corporation, Inc. -- http://www.benq.com/-- is principally engaged in manufacturing, developing and selling of computer peripherals and telecommunication products. It is also a major provider of 3G handset, 3G handset, Camera phones, and other products. BenQ Mobile GmbH & Co., the company's wholly owned subsidiary, operates from Munich, Germany. BenQ Mobile filed for insolvency in Germany on Sept. 29. The collapse follows a year after Siemens sold the company to Taiwanese technology group BenQ. BenQ Mobile has lost market share against giant competitors. On Aug. 24, BenQ disclosed of plans to spin-off its manufacturing operations in early 2007, separating contract manufacturing and own-brand divisions. * * * As reported in the TCR-AP on Oct. 31, Taiwan Ratings Corp. affirmed its twBB+/twB corporate credit ratings and twBB+ unsecured corporate bond issue rating on BenQ Corp. The outlook on the long-term rating is negative. At the same time, Taiwan Ratings removed all ratings from Credit Watch with negative implications, where they were placed on March 14, 2006, and withdrew all the ratings upon the company's request. BENQ CORP: Posts NT$11.9 Billion Sales for November 2006 -------------------------------------------------------- BenQ Corp. disclosed of its consolidated revenue for the month of November. The company's core business recorded sales of NT$11.9 billion. Unit sales of projectors hit a record high again in November as the company recorded sales growth four quarters in a row. "Projector strength is especially apparent in Europe and Asia Pacific," according to Eric Ky Yu, BenQ's Senior Vice President of Finance and Spokesperson. BenQ projectors continued its strong performance in third quarter, ranking No. 1 in twelve markets, including Germany, according to DTC Worldwide, a leading market research firm. Organizational Restructuring BenQ is moving ahead with its organizational re-alignment as previously announced. With BenQ's handset business, "we plan to continue making adjustments to headcount and capacity," continued Mr. Yu, and additionally, following the announced re- alignment of the company's Integrated Manufacturing Services business, "customers have responded quite favorably as evidenced by BenQ's recent customers wins." For purposes of improving the company's balance sheet and financial structure, BenQ's board of directors convened Dec. 6 to approve a proposed issuance of unsecured bonds exchangeable into shares of AU Optronics and NT$5 billion in syndication financing. Headquartered in Taiwan, Republic of China, BenQ Corporation, Inc. -- http://www.benq.com/-- is principally engaged in manufacturing, developing and selling of computer peripherals and telecommunication products. It is also a major provider of 3G handset, 3G handset, Camera phones, and other products. BenQ Mobile GmbH & Co., the company's wholly owned subsidiary, operates from Munich, Germany. BenQ Mobile filed for insolvency in Germany on Sept. 29, with Martin Prager serving as insolvency manager. The collapse came a year after Siemens sold the company to Taiwanese technology group BenQ. BenQ Mobile has lost market share against giant competitors. * * * As reported in the TCR-AP on Oct. 31, Taiwan Ratings Corp. affirmed its twBB+/twB corporate credit ratings and twBB+ unsecured corporate bond issue rating on BenQ Corp. The outlook on the long-term rating is negative. At the same time, Taiwan Ratings removed all ratings from Credit Watch with negative implications, where they were placed on March 14, 2006, and withdrew all the ratings upon the company's request. BSS BERATUNG: Claims Registration Ends December 12 -------------------------------------------------- Creditors of BSS Beratung und Software-Systeme GmbH have until Dec. 12 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Martin Buchheister. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 10:00 a.m. on Jan. 12, 2007, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Arnsberg Meeting Room 328 Eichholzstr. 4 59821 Arnsberg, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Arnsberg opened bankruptcy proceedings against BSS Beratung und Software-Systeme GmbH on Nov. 1. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: BSS Beratung und Software-Systeme GmbH Attn: Horst Kloppsteck, Manager Dungestr. 84 59757 Arnsberg, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Martin Buchheister Rathausplatz 21-23 58507 Luedenscheid, Germany CAS GMBH: Claims Registration Ends December 18 ---------------------------------------------- Creditors of CAS GmbH Chemieanlagenbau Suedharz have until Dec. 18 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Ulrich Hauter. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 2:50 p.m. on Jan. 15, 2007, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Muehlhausen Area 35 Untermarkt 17 Muehlhausen, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Muehlhausen opened bankruptcy proceedings against CAS GmbH Chemieanlagenbau Suedharz on Oct. 24. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: CAS GmbH Chemieanlagenbau Suedharz Attn: Dr. Thomas Schlieper, Manager Leipziger Strasse 2 99762 Niedersachswerfen, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Ulrich Hauter Untermarkt 12 99974 Muehlhausen, Germany CENTRO INTERNATIONALER: Claims Registration Ends December 13 ------------------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Centro Internationaler Gastronomie-Service Gross- und Einzelhandelsgesellschaft mbH have until Dec. 13 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Rolf Weidmann. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 1:20 p.m. on Jan. 10, 2007, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Essen Hall 293 2nd Floor Principal Establishment Gelber Bereich Zweigertstr. 52 45130 Essen, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Essen opened bankruptcy proceedings against Centro Internationaler Gastronomie-Service Gross- und Einzelhandelsgesellschaft mbH on Nov. 2. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: Centro Internationaler Gastronomie-Service Gross- und Einzelhandelsgesellschaft mbH Attn: Danny Mecke, Manager Riedinger Road 16 45141 Essen, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Rolf Weidmann Alfredstr. 279 45133 Essen, Germany Tel: 0201/437760 Fax: 02014377620 GOLDEN FLOWERS: Claims Registration Ends December 12 ---------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Golden Flowers GmbH have until Dec. 12 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Harald Silz. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 10:00 a.m. on Jan. 9, 2007, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Wiesbaden E 36 A 3rd Floor Building E Moritzstrasse 5 Hinterhaus 65185 Wiesbaden, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Wiesbaden opened bankruptcy proceedings against Golden Flowers GmbH on Oct. 17. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: Golden Flowers GmbH Attn: Cornelia de Groot, Manager Asternweg 12 65232 Taunusstein, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Harald Silz Adolfsallee 24 65185 Wiesbaden, Germany Tel: 0611/15040 Fax: 0611/301774 HARTSTEINWERKE WILLI: Claims Registration Ends Dec. 11 ------------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Hartsteinwerke Willi Setz GmbH & Co. KG have until Dec. 11 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Marc Herbert. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 8:35 a.m. on Dec. 13, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Saarbruecken Meeting Room 24 2nd Floor Branch Office Sulzbach Vopeliusstrasse 2 66280 Sulzbach, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Saarbruecken opened bankruptcy proceedings against Hartsteinwerke Willi Setz GmbH & Co. KG on Nov. 1. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: Hartsteinwerke Willi Setz GmbH & Co. KG Gresaubacher Road 66822 Lebach, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Marc Herbert Neikesstrasse 3 66111 Saarbruecken, Germany HEINING & MUELLER: Claims Registration Ends December 18 ------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Heining & Mueller GmbH have until Dec. 18 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Andreas Roepke. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 10:40 a.m. on Jan. 8, 2007, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Duisburg Area C407 4th Floor Cardinal Galen Road 124-132 47058 Duisburg, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Duisburg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Heining & Mueller GmbH on Nov. 1. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: Heining & Mueller GmbH Lahnstr. 30 45478 Muelheim, Germany Attn: Georg Kueppers, Manager Laarer Bach 17 41379 Brueggen, Germany Martin Oldenhoff, Manager Fischenbeck 14 45472 Muelheim, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Dr. Andreas Roepke Dammstr. 26 47119 Duisburg, Germany HELMUT WACHENFELD: Claims Registration Ends December 12 ------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Helmut Wachenfeld GmbH have until Dec. 12 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Helmuth Liesegang. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:55 a.m. on Jan. 11, 2007, at which time the administrator will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Wuppertal Meeting Room A234 2nd Floor Isle 2 42103 Wuppertal, Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The District Court of Wuppertal opened bankruptcy proceedings against Helmut Wachenfeld GmbH on Nov. 1. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be contacted at: Helmut Wachenfeld GmbH Uellendahler Str. 353 42109 Wuppertal, Germany Attn: Carsten Hoeffler, Manager Cronenfelder Str. 52 42349 Wuppertal, Germany The administrator can be contacted at: Dr. Helmuth Liesegang Briller Road 2 42103 Wuppertal, Germany LEAR CORP: Majority of Noteholders Tender Senior Notes ------------------------------------------------------ Lear Corp. disclosed the results to date of its tender offer commenced Nov. 21, 2006, for up to US$850 million aggregate principal amount of its 8.125% senior notes due 2008, of which around EUR237 million are outstanding, and its 8.11% senior notes due 2009, of which around US$593 million are outstanding. The early tender date with respect to the notes has expired. As of 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on Dec. 5, 2006, holders of around EUR170.3 million in aggregate principal amount of 2008 notes and around US$543.2 million in aggregate principal amount of 2009 notes had tendered their notes pursuant to the offer. This represents around 72% and 92% of the outstanding principal amount of 2008 notes and 2009 notes, respectively. Rights to withdraw tendered notes terminated at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on Dec. 5, 2006. Holders of the 2008 notes who delivered valid tenders by the early tender date and whose notes are accepted for payment will receive the total consideration of EUR1,045 per EUR1,000 principal amount at maturity plus accrued interest. The payment date for the 2008 notes tendered as of the early tender date will occur promptly following the acceptance of such tenders, which is currently expected to occur on Dec. 6, 2006. Lear also announced that all holders whose 2009 notes are validly tendered on or prior to the expiration date will be eligible to receive the total consideration offered pursuant to the tender offer. Accordingly, all holders whose 2009 notes are validly tendered on or prior to the expiration date, including notes validly tendered after the early tender date of Dec. 5, 2006, will be eligible to receive a purchase price of US$1,055 per US$1,000 principal amount at maturity for the 2009 notes. The tender offer will expire at midnight, New York City time, on Dec. 19, 2006, unless extended. The purchase price for any 2008 notes validly tendered after Dec. 5, 2006 and prior to the expiration of the tender offer is EUR1,025 per EUR1,000 principal amount at maturity plus accrued interest. The tender offer for the 2009 notes will be in an aggregate amount such that the aggregate principal amount of 2008 notes and 2009 notes purchased in the tender offer will not exceed an aggregate maximum tender offer amount of US$850 million. All notes purchased in the tender offer will be retired upon consummation of the tender offer. The consummation of the tender offer is conditioned upon certain customary closing conditions. If any of the conditions are not satisfied, Lear is not obligated to accept for payment, purchase or pay for, or may delay the acceptance for payment of, any tendered notes, and may terminate the tender offer. Subject to applicable law, Lear may waive any condition applicable to the tender offer and extend or otherwise amend the tender offer. Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking is the dealer manager for the tender offer. Global Bondholder Services Corporation is acting as information agent and the depositary. The Company has also retained Dexia Banque Internationale a Luxembourg to act as depositary for the 2008 notes. About the Company Southfield, Mich.-based Lear Corp. (NYSE: LEA) -- http://www.lear.com/-- is a global supplier of automotive interior systems and components. Lear provides complete seat systems, electronic products, electrical distribution systems, and other interior products. Lear also operates in Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Honduras, Hungary, India. Italy, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey and Venezuela. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 23, Moody's Investors Service raised Lear Corp.'s rating outlook to stable from negative and affirmed all other Lear ratings. In a TCR-Europe report on Nov. 22, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'B-' ratings to Lear Corp.'s US$300 million senior notes due 2013 and its US$400 million senior notes due 2016. Lear's 'B+' corporate credit and other ratings were affirmed. The outlook is negative. Moody's Investors Service has assigned a B3, LGD4, 61% rating to Lear Corporation's new offering of US$700 million of unsecured notes. At the same time, Moody's affirmed Lear's Corporate Family Rating of B2, Speculative Grade Liquidity rating of SGL-2 and negative outlook. All other long-term ratings are unchanged. VOLKSWAGEN AG: Rupert Stadler Succeeds Dr. Winterkorn at Audi ------------------------------------------------------------- The Supervisory Board of Audi AG appointed Rupert Stadler, Board Member for Finance and Organization, as the company's acting Chairman of the Board of Management effective Jan. 1, 2007. Mr. Stadler will retain responsibility for his previous portfolio on top of his new role. At the same time Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, who is taking over as Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG on Jan. 1, 2007, will be switching to the company's Supervisory Board and has been elected as the new Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Audi AG by its members. Dr. Winterkorn thanked Dr. Bernd Pischetsrieder, who had served as Supervisory Board Chairman of Audi AG since Jan. 1, 2002, for his reliable, effective work and his contribution as Audi's Supervisory Board Chairman, commending the part he had played in helping the company to develop attractive models, bring them successfully to market, and thus strengthen Audi's worldwide profile as a premium brand. Headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany, the Volkswagen Group -- http://www.volkswagen.de/-- is one of the world's leading automobile manufacturers and the largest carmaker in Europe. With 47 production plants in eleven European countries and a further seven countries in the Americas, Asia and Africa, Volkswagen has more than 343,000 employees producing over 21,500 vehicles or are involved in vehicle-related services on every working day. * * * Volkswagen has been carrying out measures to cut costs and raise profits, which could affect up to 30,000 jobs. The potential job cuts represent about a third of the carmaker's workforce and three times higher than initial estimates made by Chief Executive Bernd Pischetsrieder and Volkswagen brand head, Wolfgang Bernhard. In November last year, Volkswagen maintained its 2005 earnings guidance amid rumors it may lower targets. The company predicts a year-on-year improvement in both operating profit after special items and profit before tax this year. Rumors flew that the company would slash full-year earnings forecast due to higher restructuring costs. The company said the impact of its workforce reduction measures, which will be charged as special items in the fourth quarter, will be lower than last year's. The company also admitted there were no significant improvements in the economic environment in the first nine months of 2005, and the overall situation in the important automotive markets remained difficult. It also expected tougher competition in the Chinese and U.S. markets, and the rise in fuel prices to influence consumer confidence. ============= H U N G A R Y ============= BORSODCHEM NYRT: Effects Changes in Personnel Structure ------------------------------------------------------- BorsodChem Nyrt. informs its investors and other participants of the capital markets that in line with the goals of its Strategy 2007-2012, the following organizational and personnel changes take place with immediate effect at BorsodChem Nyrt. and its subsidiary BC-MCHZ s.r.o, Ostrava, Czech Republic: * Bela S. Varga has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer of BC-MCHZ and replaces Alexander Palffy who decided to leave the company. * Chief Financial Officer Dr Janos Illessy will take additional corporate-wide responsibilities of Human Resources, Legal, Communications and Internal Audit affairs. * Dr. Zoltan Gazdik has been appointed as Finance & IT Director of BorsodChem Nyrt. and will take responsibility of all Finance and IT matters of BorsodChem Group. About BorsodChem Headquartered in Kazincbarcika, Hungary, BorsodChem Nyrt. -- http://www.borsodchem.hu/-- produces chlorine, chloric alkali, hydrochloric acid, caustic lye and PVC resins, and additives for the plastic and rubber industries. The Company exports its products mainly to Western Europe. The group's EBITDA for 2005 amounted to HUF27.0 billion, 31.7% higher than HUF20.5 billion in 2004. BorsodChem's net profit was down 17.7%, to HUF14.4 billion in 2005, from HUF17.8 billion a year ago. At Dec. 31, 2005, BorsodChem's balance sheet showed HUF237.9 billion in total assets, HUF98.9 billion in total liabilities and HUF139.02 billion in total equity. * * * BorsodChem's long-term foreign and local issuer credit carry Standard and Poor's BB rating with stable outlook. ============= I R E L A N D ============= SCOTTISH RE: Completes Buyback of US$115 Million Senior Notes ------------------------------------------------------------- Scottish Re Group Limited has repurchased nearly all of the US$115-million 4.5% Senior Convertible Notes issued by Scottish Re, which note holders had the right to put to the Company. Scottish Re has begun the process of calling the remaining US$8,000 in Senior Convertible Notes that were not put in order to retire the full issue. About Scottish Re Scottish Re Group Limited -- http://www.scottishre.com/-- provides reinsurance of life insurance, annuities and annuity- type products through its operating companies in Bermuda, Charlotte, North Carolina, Dublin, Ireland, Grand Cayman, and Windsor, England. At March 31, 2006, the reinsurer's balance sheet showed US$12.2 billion assets and US$10.8 billion in liabilities * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 29, Moody's Investors Service continues to review the ratings of Scottish Re Group Ltd. with direction uncertain following the announcement by the company that it has entered into an agreement to sell a majority stake to MassMutual Capital Partners LLC, a member of the MassMutual Financial Group and Cerberus Capital Management, L.P., a private investment firm. These ratings continue on review with direction uncertain: * Scottish Re Group Limited: -- senior unsecured debt of Ba3; -- senior unsecured shelf of (P)Ba3; -- subordinate shelf of (P)B1; -- junior subordinate shelf of (P)B1; -- preferred stock of B2; and -- preferred stock shelf of (P)B2. * Scottish Holdings Statutory Trust II: preferred stock shelf of (P)B1; * Scottish Holdings Statutory Trust III: preferred stock shelf of (P)B1; * Scottish Annuity & Life Insurance Co (Cayman) Ltd.: insurance financial strength of Baa3; * Premium Asset Trust Series 2004-4: senior secured debt of Baa3 (based on IFS of SALIC); * Scottish Re (U.S.), Inc.: insurance financial strength of Baa3; * Stingray Pass-Through Certificates: senior secured debt of Baa3 (based on IFS rating of SALIC). At the same time, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services revised the CreditWatch status of its ratings on Scottish Re Group Ltd., Scottish Re's operating companies, and dependent unwrapped securitized deals to positive from negative. The ratings on securitizations that are wrapped or independent of the credit quality of Scottish Re have been affirmed. Scottish Re has a 'CCC' counterparty credit rating, and Scottish Re's operating companies have 'B+' counterparty credit and financial strength ratings. These ratings were placed on CreditWatch negative on July 31, 2006, when Scottish Re announced poor second-quarter results and that liquidity was tight. Fitch Ratings added that Scottish Re Group Ltd.'s ratings remain on Rating Watch Negative following the announcement that SCT has entered into an agreement which will result in a new equity investment into the company of US$600 million. SCT's ratings were placed on Rating Watch Negative on July 31, due to concerns regarding the company's ability to repay US$115 million of senior convertible notes that are expected to be put to the company on Dec. 6. The ratings remain on Rating Watch Negative: Scottish Annuity & Life Insurance Company (Cayman) Limited -- IFS at BBB. Scottish Re (U.S.) Inc. -- IFS at BBB. Scottish Re Limited -- IFS at BBB. Scottish Re Group Limited -- IDR at BB; -- 4.5% US$115 million senior convertible notes at BB-; -- 5.875% US$142 million hybrid capital units at B+; and -- 7.25% US$125 million non-cumulative perpetual preferred stock at B+. A.M. Best Co. has downgraded the Financial Strength Rating to B from B+ and the issuer credit ratings to "bb+" from "bbb-" of the primary operating insurance subsidiaries of Scottish Re Group Limited. A.M. Best has also downgraded the ICR of Scottish Re to "b" from "bb-" and all of Scottish Re's debt ratings. All ratings remain under review with negative implications. The FSR has been downgraded to B from B+ and the ICRs have been downgraded to "bb+" from "bbb-" and remain under review with negative implications for the following subsidiaries of Scottish Re Group Limited: -- Scottish Annuity & Life Insurance Company (Cayman) Ltd.; -- Scottish Re (U.S.), Inc.; -- Scottish Re Life Corporation; -- Scottish Re Limited; and -- Orkney Re, Inc. The ICR has been downgraded to "b" from "bb-" and remains under review with negative implications for Scottish Re Group Limited. These debt ratings have been downgraded and remain under review with negative implications: Scottish Re Group Limited -- to "b" from "bb-" on US$115 million 4.5% senior unsecured convertible notes, due 2022; -- to "ccc+" from "b" on US$143 million 5.875% of hybrid capital units, due 2007; and -- to "ccc+" from "b" on US$125 million non-cumulative preferred shares. Stingray Pass-thru Trust -- to "bb" from "bbb-" on US$325 million senior unsecured pass-thru certificates, due 2012 These indicative ratings for debt securities under the shelf registration have been downgraded and remain under review with negative implications: Scottish Re Group Limited -- -- to "ccc+" from "b" on preferred stock; -- to "b-" from "b+" on subordinated debt; and -- to "b" from "bb-" on senior unsecured debt; Scottish Holdings Statutory Trust II and III --to "b-" from "b+" on preferred securities ========= I T A L Y ========= PARMALAT: Court Permits Citibank to Pursue Actions from Dec. 29 --------------------------------------------------------------- In a stipulation approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, Citibank, N.A., and Citibank, N.A. International Banking Facility, on one hand, and Dr. Enrico Bondi, extraordinary administrator of Parmalat Finanziaria S.p.A. and certain of its affiliates and CEO of Reorganized Parmalat, on the other hand, amend their previous stipulation and agree that: a. at 5:00 p.m., New York time, on Dec. 29, 2006, the Preliminary Injunction Order will automatically be deemed modified to permit Citibank to take any action to enforce its rights against Parmalat Paraguay S.A. or otherwise with respect to Parmalat Paraguay's obligations to Citibank in Paraguay; b. during the standstill period, which runs from Nov. 30, to Dec. 29, 2006, Reorganized Parmalat will provide Citibank, concerning Parmalat Paraguay and its subsidiaries, with: * access to company management; * access to their Paraguayan advisers; * access to their books and records; and * copies of, and access to, forecasts, budgets, restructuring plans, term sheets relating to a sale or other disposition of the assets, purchase and sale agreements, and correspondence relating to a sale or other disposition of assets or the restructuring of indebtedness; and c. during the Standstill Period, Reorganized Parmalat will not sell, transfer, encumber or incur new debt on any of the assets or shares of any of the Parmalat Paraguay Entities without Citibank's prior written consent. About Parmalat Headquartered in Milan, Italy, Parmalat S.p.A. -- http://www.parmalat.net/-- sells nameplate milk products that can be stored at room temperature for months. It also has 40- some brand product line, which includes yogurt, cheese, butter, cakes and cookies, breads, pizza, snack foods and vegetable sauces, soups and juices. The Company's U.S. operations filed for chapter 11 protection on Feb. 24, 2004 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Case No. 04-11139). Gary Holtzer, Esq., and Marcia L. Goldstein, Esq., at Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP, represent the Debtors. When the U.S. Debtors filed for bankruptcy protection, they reported more than US$200 million in assets and debts. The U.S. Debtors emerged from bankruptcy on April 13, 2005. Parmalat S.p.A. and its Italian affiliates filed separate petitions for Extraordinary Administration before the Italian Ministry of Productive Activities and the Civil and Criminal District Court of the City of Parma, Italy on Dec. 24, 2003. Dr. Enrico Bondi was appointed Extraordinary Commissioner in each of the cases. The Parma Court has declared the units insolvent. On June 22, 2004, Dr. Bondi filed a Sec. 304 Petition, Case No. 04-14268, in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. REVLON CONSUMER: Plans to Increase Term Loan to US$840 Million -------------------------------------------------------------- Revlon Consumer Products Corp., a wholly owned operating subsidiary of Revlon Inc., plans to refinance its existing credit agreement as part of the Company's overall plans to improve cash flow and strengthen its balance sheet and capital structure. As part of the refinancing, RCPC expects to refinance and replace its existing US$800 million term loan with a new 5-year US$840 million term loan facility and amend its existing US$160 million multi-currency revolving credit facility and extend its maturity through the same 5-year period. It is expected that the 2006 Term Loan Facility would be secured by substantially the same collateral package and guarantees that secure RCPC's existing term loan facility and the 2006 Revolving Credit Facility will continue to be secured by its existing collateral package and guarantees. While there can be no assurances that the 2006 Credit Facilities will be finalized and closed, if RCPC completes this refinancing, the Company believes that it will result in annual interest savings due to expected lower interest margins, provide the Company with greater financial and other covenant flexibility and extend the maturity dates of RCPC's existing bank credit agreement. RCPC expects to use the proceeds of the 2006 Credit Facilities to repay in full the around US$800 million of outstanding indebtedness (plus accrued interest and a prepayment fee) under its existing term loan facility. The balance of such proceeds is expected to be available for general corporate purposes, after paying fees and expenses incurred in connection with consummating the 2006 Credit Facilities. RCPC expects to close and fund the 2006 Credit Facilities in late December 2006. Consummation of the 2006 Credit Facilities transactions is subject to a number of customary conditions, including, among other things, the execution of definitive documentation, perfection of security interests in collateral and that Revlon launch a rights offering for at least US$100 million in equity securities. Citicorp Global Markets Inc. has agreed to act as Sole Lead Arranger and Sole Bookrunner, with Citicorp USA, Inc. acting as Administrative Agent on the 2006 Term Loan Facility and 2006 Revolving Credit Facility. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. has agreed to act as Syndication Agent on the 2006 Term Loan Facility. Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The Company's brands include Revlon(R), Almay(R), Vital Radiance(R), Ultima(R), Charlie(R), Flex(R), and Mitchum(R). Headquartered in New York, Revlon Consumer Products Corp. is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- which in turn is majority-owned by MacAndrews and Forbes, which is wholly owned by Ronald O. Perelman. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 2, Moody's Investors Service lowered Revlon Consumer Products Corporation's long-term ratings, including the corporate family rating to Caa1 from B3. Moody's affirmed the company's speculative grade liquidity rating of SGL-4. Moody's said the outlook remains negative. As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter on Sept. 27, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered all of its ratings on New York City-based Revlon Consumer Products Corp., including its corporate credit rating, to 'CCC+' from 'B-'. S&P said the outlook is negative. REVLON CONSUMER: S&P Junks US$840-Mln Senior Secured Term Loan -------------------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its loan and recovery ratings to New York, N.Y.-based Revlon Consumer Products Corp.'s new US$840-million senior secured term loan due 2012. The loan rating is 'CCC+', with a recovery rating of '2', indicating the expectation for substantial (80%-100%) recovery of principal in the event of a payment default. At the same time, Standard & Poor's affirmed its existing ratings on Revlon, including the 'CCC+' corporate credit rating. The rating outlook is negative. In addition to the proposed term loan facility, Revlon also announced that it intends to increase the size of its previously planned US$75 million rights offering to US$100 million. McAndrews & Forbes is committed to purchasing its 60% pro rata share of the equity covered by the offering. M&F will also backstop up to US$75 million of the offering, and will continue to provide an additional US$50 million line of credit through January 2008. The bank refinancing will close in December 2006, and the rights offering will be completed in January 2007. Proceeds from the new term loan facility will be used to refinance Revlon's existing US$800 million term loan facility, and the balance will be available for general corporate purposes after the repayment of transaction related fees and expenses. Proceeds from the rights offering will be used to repay US$50 million of its 8.625% subordinated notes (rated 'CCC-') due in 2008, with the remainder used to pay down its existing revolver balance after fees and expenses (the US$160 million maximum revolver commitment remains unchanged). At Sept. 30, 2006, the company had about US$1.465 billion in total debt outstanding and, on a pro forma basis, will have about US$1.404 billion of total debt outstanding at the closing of the bank refinancing and rights offering. REVLON INC: To Launch US$100-Million Additional Share Issue ----------------------------------------------------------- Revlon Inc. intends to launch, in December 2006, a US$100 million rights offering that would allow stockholders to purchase additional shares of Revlon Class A common stock. Revlon plans to use the proceeds of such equity issuance to reduce debt. Pursuant to the rights offering, Revlon would distribute at no charge to each stockholder of record of its Class A and Class B common stock, as of the close of business on Dec. 11, 2006, the record date set by Revlon's Board of Directors, transferable subscription rights that would enable such stockholders to purchase shares of Class A common stock at a subscription price to be determined by a committee of Revlon's Board of Directors composed solely of independent directors within the meaning of Section 303A.02 of the NYSE Listed Company Manual and the Board's Guidelines for Assessing Director Independence, and based on market conditions at the time of the rights offering. Pursuant to an over-subscription privilege in the rights offering, each rights holder that exercises its basic subscription privilege in full may also subscribe for additional shares at the same subscription price per share, to the extent that other stockholders do not exercise their subscription rights in full. If an insufficient number of shares is available to fully satisfy the over-subscription privilege requests, the available shares will be sold pro-rata among subscription rights holders who exercised their over- subscription privilege, based on the number of shares each subscription rights holder subscribed for under the basic subscription privilege. MacAndrews & Forbes, Revlon's parent company, which is wholly owned by Ronald O. Perelman, has agreed to purchase its pro rata share of the US$100 million of Class A common stock covered by the rights offering, which share M&F would otherwise have been entitled to subscribe for in the rights offering pursuant to its basic subscription right. Additionally, pursuant to its existing backstop obligation, if any shares remain following the exercise of the basic subscription privilege and the over- subscription privilege by other rights holders, MacAndrews & Forbes will backstop US$75 million of the rights offering by purchasing such number of remaining shares of Class A common stock offered but not purchased by other stockholders as would be sufficient for the aggregate gross proceeds of the rights offering to total US$75 million. Although MacAndrews & Forbes would otherwise be entitled to an over-subscription right, it has agreed not to exercise its over-subscription right, which will maximize the shares available for purchase by other stockholders pursuant to their over-subscription rights. The rights offering of around US$100 million would be conducted via an existing effective shelf registration statement. Around US$50 million of the proceeds from the rights offering are expected to be used to redeem around US$50 million principal amount of the 8 5/8% Senior Subordinated Notes due 2008 of Revlon Consumer Products Corp., Revlon's wholly owned operating subsidiary, with the remainder of such proceeds to be used to repay indebtedness outstanding under RCPC's US$160 million multi-currency revolving credit facility, without any permanent reduction in that commitment, after paying fees and expenses incurred in connection with the proposed rights offering. Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The Company's brands include Revlon(R), Almay(R), Vital Radiance(R), Ultima(R), Charlie(R), Flex(R), and Mitchum(R). Headquartered in New York, Revlon Consumer Products Corp. is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- which in turn is majority-owned by MacAndrews and Forbes, which is wholly owned by Ronald O. Perelman. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 2, Moody's Investors Service lowered Revlon Consumer Products Corporation's long-term ratings, including the corporate family rating to Caa1 from B3. Moody's affirmed the company's speculative grade liquidity rating of SGL-4. Moody's said the outlook remains negative. As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter on Sept. 27, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered all of its ratings on New York City-based Revlon Consumer Products Corp., including its corporate credit rating, to 'CCC+' from 'B-'. S&P said the outlook is negative. UNIPOL BANCA: Fitch Keeps Individual Rating at C ------------------------------------------------ Fitch Ratings upgraded Unipol Banca's Long-term IDR to BBB+ from BBB and its Short-term rating to F2 from F3. UB's Individual and Support ratings are affirmed at C and 2 respectively. The IDR has a Stable Outlook. The rating action reflects Fitch's assessment of Unipol Assicurazioni's improved ability to provide support to its banking subsidiary UB, following an increase in UA's capitalization, the arrival of new senior management in UA and a new strategic plan. The IDR, Short-term and Support ratings of UB all reflect the potential support which, Fitch considers it could expect to receive from its 85% shareholder, in case of need. UA was Italy's third largest insurance group by premium income in 2005. The bank's Individual rating takes into account its small size and limited physical presence, still vulnerable and untested profitability and a high degree of concentration and connected lending in its loan book. It also reflects, however, reasonable asset quality and acceptable capital adequacy. UB was set up by UA to widen its distribution channels and to act as its banking arm. UA has provided it with all the necessary capital required to fund its extremely fast growth. Furthermore, the bank forms an important part of the group's overall strategy. Profitability is low because of the high costs UB has incurred to expand its distribution capabilities, as well as new staff hires and revised IT systems. Revenues have also not yet reached full potential and management has to demonstrate that the bank's business model can generate an adequate and stable level of profitability by attracting more business and keeping costs under control. Impaired loans are low, although they are understated by the fast loan growth and by the relative youth of the loan book. Impaired loans rose in 2005 and in H106 and are expected to continue to rise over the long run. Loan impairment allowance is moderate compared to other Italian banks rated by Fitch but adequate in light of the high level of mortgage lending in the portfolio and hence, the level of collateral. Market risk exposure is minimal and UB is refining its controls to measure and manage its risk more accurately. Funding is relatively diversified although the bank is somewhat reliant on connected parties for customer funds. UA manages capital at a group level and has supplied fresh capital to UB as it was required. The bank's planned growth is likely to cause its current c.8% Tier 1 capital ratio to decline c.7%, an acceptable level. UA acquired Banca dell'Economia Cooperativa in 1998, a small local bank based in Bologna, and renamed it Unipol Banca, to create the banking arm of the group. By end-June 2006, the bank operated with a network of 256 branches, 136 of which are integrated with UA, and 428 financial advisers. WIND ACQUISITION: Moody's Says Loan Does Not Affect Ba3 Rating -------------------------------------------------------------- Moody's Investors Service proposed EUR1.67-billion payment-in- kind loan issued by Wind Acquisition Holdings Finance S.A. adds additional complexity to the broader ownership group but does not warrant a change in the current Ba3 Corporate Family Rating of Wind Acquisition Finance. Moody's nevertheless acknowledges that the proposed transaction could potentially reduce financial flexibility within the broader ownership group in the event that the proposed loan is not ultimately redeemed through an IPO or other shareholder action as intended at this stage. Moody's understands that the EUR1.67-billion five-year floating- rate PIK loan will be used to pay the first installment of the acquisition of Enel's 26.1% stake in Weather Investments S.p.A. for EUR1.96 billion. The PIK loan will also refinance the existing EUR587-million PIK loan at Wind Acquisition Holdings Finance S.A. In Moody's opinion, WAF's ratings remain unchanged by this transaction on the basis of our understanding and expectation that the tight ring-fence provisions within the debt instruments within the rated "restricted" group will protect WAF from being called upon to directly support the PIK loan, particularly given the absence of an inter-company credit relationship between the PIK issuing entity and the rated entity. Moody's assessment is therefore based on the understanding that the assets of the PIK lenders are limited to the shareholder interest held by Wind Acquisition Holdings in the rated group where they would have only an equity claim on the restricted group in the event of a distress situation. Moody's furthermore acknowledges that the proposed transaction may ultimately accelerate the company's plans to complete an IPO in the future, which could help strengthen the group's financial flexibility. The new PIK loan will not be rated by Moody's. The company's current ratings are: -- Ba3 corporate family rating at Wind Acquisition Finance S.p.A.; -- Ba3 senior secured credit facilities at Wind Telecomunicazioni S.p.A.; -- B1 second-lien facility at Wind Finance SL S.A.; and -- B2 senior notes issued by Wind Acquisition Finance S.A. The outlook for all ratings is stable. =================== K A Z A K H S T A N =================== AKTOBE LEASING: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 12, 2007 --------------------------------------------------- LLP Aktobe Leasing Service N has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Jan. 12, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Aktobe Leasing Service N Abulhair han ave. 71-54 Aktube Aktube Region Kazakhstan AKTOBE-SERVICE STROY: Claims Registration Ends Jan. 19, 2007 ------------------------------------------------------------ LLP Aktobe-Service Story has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Jan. 19, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Aktobe-Service Story Micro District 11, 106-116 Aktube Aktube Region Kazakhstan ALMATY TRANS: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 12, 2007 ----------------------------------------------------- LLP Almaty Trans Terminal has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Jan. 12, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Almaty Trans Terminal Baizak baatyr Str. 247 Taraz Jambyl Region Kazakhstan ASAR LLP: Proof of Claim Deadline Slated for Jan. 12, 2007 ---------------------------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Atyrau Region declared LLP Asar insolvent. Creditors have until Jan. 12, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Asar Floor 3 Abai Str. 10a Atyrau Atyrau Region Kazakhstan BERKUL LLP: Creditors Must File Claims by Jan. 16, 2007 ------------------------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Atyrau Region declared LLP Berkul insolvent. Creditors have until Jan. 16, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Berkul Floor 3 Abai Str. 10a Atyrau Atyrau Region Kazakhstan CASPIY TELECOM: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 16, 2007 --------------------------------------------------- LLP Caspiy Telecom Invest has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Jan. 16, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Caspiy Telecom Invest House of Communication Micro District 2 Aktau Mangistau Region Kazakhstan Tel: 8 (3292) 50-00-73 CHANCE-T LLP: Creditors Must File Claims by Jan. 12, 2007 --------------------------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Atyrau Region declared LLP Chance-T insolvent. Creditors have until Jan. 12, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Chance-T Floor 3 Abai Str. 10a Atyrau Atyrau Region Kazakhstan MERKE SHEKER: Jambyl Court Opens Bankruptcy Proceedings ------------------------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Jambyl Region commenced bankruptcy proceedings against LLP Merke Sheker Service on Nov. 6. MURAGER LLP: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 16, 2007 ---------------------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Almaty declared LLP Publishing House Murager insolvent on Oct. 3. Creditors have until Jan. 16, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Murager Floor 3 Makataev Str. 117 Almaty, Kazakhstan Tel/Fax: 8 (3272) 34-38-91 8 (7011) 11-77-02 TRANS-CASPIAN TRADING: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 16, 2007 ---------------------------------------------------------- LLP Trans-Caspian Trading S.A. has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Jan. 16, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLP Trans-Caspian Trading S.A. Furmanov Str. 119-14 Almalinsky District Almaty, Kazakhstan =================== K Y R G Y Z S T A N =================== LAND CAPITAL: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 19, 2007 ----------------------------------------------------- LLC Land Capital has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Jan. 19, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim. Inquiries can be addressed to (+996-555) 96-03-10. RUSSKY DOM: Creditors' Claims Due Jan. 19, 2007 ----------------------------------------------- LLC Russky Dom has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Jan. 19, 2007, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLC Russky Dom Tynystanov Str. 64-4 Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan ================= L I T H U A N I A ================= SEB VILNIAUS: Fitch Affirms Individual Rating at C -------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings affirmed Lithuania-based SEB Vilniaus Bankas's ratings at Issuer Default A, Short-term F1, Individual C, and Support 1. The Outlook remains Positive. The Issuer Default, Short-term and Support ratings of VB reflect the potential support it can expect to receive from its shareholder, the Swedish group Skandinaviska Enkilda Banken, in case of need. There is quite strong integration between VB and SEB. Treasury operations are managed centrally by SEB, and VB has group-wide risk management procedures. "The Individual rating reflects VB's considerable franchise in Lithuania, decent profitability and healthy asset quality," Tim Beck of Fitch's Financial Institutions group disclosed. "However, capitalisation is declining and has become relatively low. Further declines could be negative for the Individual rating," Mr. Beck added. Fitch also acknowledges the risks associated with rapid loan growth, including increasing exposure to the real estate markets, though there is no indication of a downturn in loan performance at present. VB is the largest bank in Lithuania and is 99% owned by SEB. It has subsidiaries involved in leasing, investment banking, mortgages, life assurance, asset management, venture capital and real estate. It sold the Ukrainian Bank Agio to SEB in Q306. ===================== N E T H E R L A N D S ===================== ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks IP Solution Deal with China Telecom Units -------------------------------------------------------------- Alcatel Shanghai Bell, Chinese unit of Alcatel-Lucent, has won IP contracts with Shanghai Telecom and Zhejiang Telecom, two subsidiaries of China Telecom. The Alcatel-Lucent IP solution has been selected by Shanghai Telecom and Zhejiang Telecom to optimize their provincial IP metropolitan area networks. Alcatel Shanghai Bell will supply the industry-leading Alcatel- Lucent 7750 Service Router (SR) and 7450 Ethernet Service Switch (ESS) for Shanghai Telecom's VPLS network. With the newly deployed network, 8 million subscribers of Shanghai Telecom will be able to enjoy premium IP services. The network will also be ready to support advanced carrier-grade services such as Ethernet VPN to its end users within the city in the future. For Zhejiang Telecom, Alcatel Shanghai Bell will also deploy the industry-leading Alcatel-Lucent 7750 SR in the cities of Ningbo, Jinhua, Lishui, Quzhou, Jiaxing and Huzhou. Upon completion of the project by the end of 2006, Zhejiang Telecom will be able to deliver voice, data and video services throughout the province as well as reliable, high-speed Internet access over a single IP network infrastructure. "Market demand for broadband services is growing on a day-to-day basis," Zhang Xinjian, General Manager, Zhejiang Telecom, said. "We anticipate that this will result in requirements for a wider variety of new and highly-reliable IP-based data services, so we have deployed Alcatel Shanghai Bell's industry-leading IP solution to equip ourselves to meet current and future broadband service requirements." "Alcatel-LucentIP portfolio is well suited to the rigorous requirements of these densely populated Chinese provinces," said Gerard Dega, President of Alcatel Shanghai Bell. "We are honored that Shanghai Telecom and Zhejiang Telecom selected our solution for their IP metropolitan area network optimization projects, further reinforcing Alcatel-Lucent's strong IP position in China, with deployments in 25 provinces." Presently, all major Chinese operators including China Netcom, China Telecom, China Unicom, and China Mobile have selected the Alcatel-Lucent7750 Service Router to optimize the delivery of high-performance carrier-grade data, voice and video services. Worldwide, more than 150 service providers in 60 countries, including AT&T, BT, Telia Sonera, Telefonica and France Telecom, have selected the Alcatel-Lucent IP portfolio. About Alcatel-Lucent Headquartered in Paris, France, Alcatel-Lucent -- http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/-- provides solutions that enable service providers, enterprises and governments worldwide, to deliver voice, data and video communication services to end users. Through its operations in fixed, mobile and converged broadband networking, Internet protocol (IP) technologies, applications, and services, Alcatel-Lucent offers the end-to-end solutions that enable communications services for people at home, at work and on the move. On Nov. 30, 2006, Alcatel and Lucent Technologies Inc. completed their merger transaction, and began operations as a communication solutions provider under the name Alcatel Lucent on Dec. 1, 2006. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 9, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said that its 'BB' long-term corporate credit rating on France-based Alcatel and its 'B' long-term corporate credit rating on U.S.-based Lucent Technologies Inc. remain on CreditWatch with negative and positive implications, respectively, where they were placed on March 24 on news of the two telecoms equipment makers' plans to merge. The ratings will remain on CreditWatch until completion of the merger and clarification of the ranking and support mechanisms for the various debt classes within the merged group's capital structure. The ratings on the individual debt issues of each company will be clarified at that time. Standard & Poor's 'B' and 'B-1' short-term corporate ratings on Alcatel and Lucent, respectively, are not on CreditWatch and remain unchanged. According to Troubled Company Reporter on April 7, Moody's Investors Service placed Lucent Technologies, Inc.'s B1 corporate family rating, B1 senior unsecured rating, B3 subordinated rating, and B3 trust preferred rating under review for possible upgrade following the company's announcement of a definitive merger agreement with Alcatel. Moody's Investors Service has placed the Ba1 long-term debt ratings of Alcatel S.A. on review for possible downgrade following its definitive agreement to merge with Lucent Technologies (rated B1). The ratings placed on review include Alcatel's senior, unsecured Eurobonds, convertible bonds, Euro- medium term notes, its EUR1.0 billion revolving credit facility and its corporate family rating, all at Ba1 currently. Alcatel's rating for short-term debt was affirmed at Not-Prime. In March 2006, Standard & Poor's Services placed its 'BB' long- term corporate credit rating on France-based telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel on CreditWatch with negative implications. ALCATEL-LUCENT: Inks Network Solution Contract with Korea's KT -------------------------------------------------------------- Alcatel-Lucent reveals that KT, the leading fixed incumbent operator in Korea, is deploying Alcatel-Lucent's optical solution to enhance the flexibility and the managed capacity of its transport network. The solution will enable KT to cope with the growing bandwidth needs driven by new and existing broadband services, to address its mobile traffic backhaul requirements and to simplify its operations. KT is deploying Alcatel-Lucent's 1678 Metro Core Connect (MCC), a scalable platform for metro and core applications that integrates data and transport functionality into a single node, thus optimizing network investments. Simplifying network operations, the Alcatel-Lucent 1678 MCC offers a cost-efficient solution to fixed and mobile operators who want to aggregate and consolidate multi-protocol traffic streams from the metro towards the core. Furthermore, its industry-leading density allows service providers to further reduce operating costs. Alcatel-Lucent's solution will be managed by its 1350 management suite, which allows the supervision of packet, TDM and wavelength services. "As data and transport worlds move closer and increase network traffic, we need to accommodate this growth while continuing to focus on network simplification and high-density solutions," said Chul Kim, Vice President of International Network Planning Division, KT. "Alcatel-Lucent offers us the ability to rely on a modular architecture that we can scale for anticipated growth when and where needed." "We are committed to help its customers to operate in a single network for current and new services, with secure, seamless connectivity, while minimizing the total cost of network ownership," said Romano Valussi, Alcatel-Lucent's optical activities. "Our solution offers a solid and cutting-edge platform allowing Korea Telecom to succeed in serving its end- user demands for broadband services." The award further strengthens the long-lasting cooperation in optical networking with KT, who already deployed Alcatel- Lucent's data-aware Optical Multi-Service Node (OMSN) systems and the 1696 Metrospan WDM platform. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 9, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said that its 'BB' long-term corporate credit rating on France-based Alcatel and its 'B' long-term corporate credit rating on U.S.-based Lucent Technologies Inc. remain on CreditWatch with negative and positive implications, respectively, where they were placed on March 24 on news of the two telecoms equipment makers' plans to merge. The ratings will remain on CreditWatch until completion of the merger and clarification of the ranking and support mechanisms for the various debt classes within the merged group's capital structure. The ratings on the individual debt issues of each company will be clarified at that time. Standard & Poor's 'B' and 'B-1' short-term corporate ratings on Alcatel and Lucent, respectively, are not on CreditWatch and remain unchanged. According to Troubled Company Reporter on April 7, Moody's Investors Service placed Lucent Technologies, Inc.'s B1 corporate family rating, B1 senior unsecured rating, B3 subordinated rating, and B3 trust preferred rating under review for possible upgrade following the company's announcement of a definitive merger agreement with Alcatel. Moody's Investors Service has placed the Ba1 long-term debt ratings of Alcatel S.A. on review for possible downgrade following its definitive agreement to merge with Lucent Technologies (rated B1). The ratings placed on review include Alcatel's senior, unsecured Eurobonds, convertible bonds, Euro- medium term notes, its EUR1.0 billion revolving credit facility and its corporate family rating, all at Ba1 currently. Alcatel's rating for short-term debt was affirmed at Not-Prime. In March 2006, Standard & Poor's Services placed its 'BB' long- term corporate credit rating on France-based telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel on CreditWatch with negative implications. ============= R O M A N I A ============= BANCA TRANSILVANIA: Fitch Keeps Issuer Default Rating at BB- ------------------------------------------------------------ Fitch Ratings affirmed the ratings of Romania-based Banca Transilvania at Issuer Default BB-, Short-term B, Support 4 and Individual D. The Outlook on the Issuer Default rating remains Stable. BT's ratings reflect good level of profitability and the franchise the bank has developed. They also reflect modest levels of capitalization combined with relatively low loan reserve levels, as well as risks associated with its fast expansion. "BT has developed a decent franchise in the retail and SME sectors, and has grown to be the fifth largest bank in the country," says Tim Beck, Director in Fitch's Financial Institutions Group. "However, this level of growth does lead to risks, most notably in the loan book, where performance may worsen as loans season." Profitability is reasonably strong, but the bank has seen some margin pressure, particularly on the lending side. "Margin pressure is likely to continue," added Mr. Beck. "The Romanian banking sector is becoming increasingly competitive as foreign owners complete their restructuring programs and strive to establish a meaningful franchise." As noted above, BT is now the fifth largest Romanian bank, with the fourth largest branch network, representing 4.5% of system assets. It has a nation-wide presence, though its market shares are greater in its home region of Transilvania, which accounts for around half of the bank's business. Ownership is fairly widespread with shares listed on Bucharest stock exchange. The largest shareholder is the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development with 15%. No other shareholder owns more than 5%. =========== R U S S I A =========== ALFA-BANK: Eyes US$2-Billion Investment in Indonesia ---------------------------------------------------- Alfa-Bank's President Peter Aven met with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during the latter's state visit to Russia. Discussing the possibilities of expanding Russian-Indonesian economic cooperation, Mr. Aven announced the intentions of the Alfa Group to invest in telecommunication and other sectors of Indonesian economy to the amount of up to US$2 billion. The President of Indonesia welcomed this announcement and declared that his government will back this initiative. President Yudhoyono has underlined that the expansion of cooperation between Russia and Indonesia, covering the whole spectrum of mutual interests, is in line with the intentions of both countries' presidents. "Russian companies have a chance to take a deserved place among major international investors, and we are not going to miss this opportunity," Mr. Aven said. "We believe that there is a huge potential for successful development of business for Russian companies in Indonesia in particular, and throughout the South- East Asia as well. Alfa-Group has extensive investment expertise in foreign telecom markets, in particular, the largest ever investment deal of Russian business with the purchase of shares in Turkcell, a Turkish telecom company. We have a clear intention to use our experience in Indonesia in a way that will promote strengthening of economic cooperation between our two countries." About Alfa Bank Headquartered in Moscow, Russia, Alfa Bank -- http://www.alfabank.com/-- provides services in every key sector of the financial service industry, including corporate banking, retail banking, investment banking, trade finance, insurance and asset management. Alfa Bank's branch network has grown to 121, including subsidiary banks in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and the Netherlands. In 2005 total assets of the Alfa Bank and its subsidiaries grew to US$9.8 billion, total equity increased to US$855.8 million, loan portfolio net of provisions increased to US$5.7 billion. The net profit for a year 2005 was US$180.6 million. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 6, Fitch Ratings assigned Alfa MTN Issuance Limited's US$400 million 7.875% notes issue due October 2009 a Long-term BB- rating. The proceeds from the issue will be on-lent to Alfa Bank, rated Issuer Default BB- /Outlook Stable, Short-term B, Support 4, Individual C/D, and National Long-term A+/Outlook Stable. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Sept. 12, Fitch Ratings upgraded Russia-based Alfa Bank's ratings to Issuer Default BB- from B+, Individual C/D from D and National Long-term to A+ from A. The Outlooks on the Issuer Default and National Long-term ratings remain Stable. Alfa's other ratings are affirmed at Short-term B and Support 4. Alfa's outstanding senior unsecured debt issues are also upgraded to BB- from B+ and its subordinated debt issue due December 2015 to B+ from B-. The two-notch upgrade of the subordinated debt reflects the rules-based, rather than recoveries-based, approach to assigning Recovery Ratings to issues of entities rated BB- and above. As reported in the TCR-Europe on July 17, Moody's Investors Service upgraded Alfa Bank's Financial Strength Rating to D from D- and changed its outlook to stable from positive. At the same time, the bank's Ba2 long-term foreign currency deposit and senior unsecured debt ratings have been affirmed with their corresponding outlooks changed to stable. The bank's Not-Prime short-term foreign currency deposit and debt ratings and their outlook remain unchanged. ALFA BANK: Forms PatriotCapital with NPO OboronReformProekt ----------------------------------------------------------- Alfa Bank and NPO OboronReformProekt have established PatriotCapital company to promote the formation of financially sound integrated structures in the defense sector. The form of incorporation is a limited liability company with its registered capital of RUR400 million. The founders have equal shares (50% each) in the capital and equally divided votes on the board of directors of the new company. PatriotCapital will be involved in the process of solving problems that face defense enterprises through optimization of their financial operations, debt restructuring, trust management of assets and rendering assistance to fight raiders. Alfa Bank intends to encourage investments for the development, modernization and reconstruction of these enterprises. Alexander Chernikov, Director of OboronReformProekt, said Alfa Bank was chosen owing to its "hands-on skills at working with specific and viable projects." Within the framework of the Federal Program for Restructuring and Conversion of the Defense Sector in Russia through 2010 it is planned to establish 40-45 vertically integrated holdings incorporating nearly 46% of the enterprises listed the register of the military-industrial complex. "Most of them are federal state unitary enterprises," Mr. Chernikov said. "They are going to be transformed into joint stock companies -- and in such a way that the state would retain power over them, including financial control. Here the experience of Alfa Bank would be invaluable." "It is not a classical lending," Alexandr Bugaevsky, senior vice-president at Alfa Bank, said. "One of the objectives for PatriotCapital lies in helping enterprises of the military industrial complex to become creditworthy. Alfa Bank will provide loans and assist clients in accessing open capital markets." "We will be working as sort of a tool that in a crisis situation would promptly analyze the problem and advise on how to overcome it, furnishing financial assistance if necessary," Alexei Trufanov, chairman of the board at OboronReformProekt, said. "This is aimed to make the enterprise able to improve the situation and at the same time retain state control." Alfa Bank is actively developing cooperation with the largest state-run companies and government agencies. Early in 2006, Alfa Bank signed two agreements for cooperation with the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation and the Federal Agency for Atomic Energy (Rosatom) to become a financial advisor and investment projects manager for both institutions. NPO OboronReformProekt -- a company founded by Oboronimpex -- was established in February 2006 with the objective to monitor financial and economic situation of defense enterprises while executing export contracts. NPO is developing measures to prevent hostile take-over initiatives, and is preparing and implementing anti-crisis programs for defense enterprises. About Alfa Bank Headquartered in Moscow, Russia, Alfa Bank -- http://www.alfabank.com/-- provides services in every key sector of the financial service industry, including corporate banking, retail banking, investment banking, trade finance, insurance and asset management. Alfa Bank's branch network has grown to 121, including subsidiary banks in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and the Netherlands. In 2005 total assets of the Alfa Bank and its subsidiaries grew to US$9.8 billion, total equity increased to US$855.8 million, loan portfolio net of provisions increased to US$5.7 billion. The net profit for a year 2005 was US$180.6 million. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 6, Fitch Ratings assigned Alfa MTN Issuance Limited's US$400 million 7.875% notes issue due October 2009 a Long-term BB- rating. The proceeds from the issue will be on-lent to Alfa Bank, rated Issuer Default BB- /Outlook Stable, Short-term B, Support 4, Individual C/D, and National Long-term A+/Outlook Stable. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Sept. 12, Fitch Ratings upgraded Russia-based Alfa Bank's ratings to Issuer Default BB- from B+, Individual C/D from D and National Long-term to A+ from A. The Outlooks on the Issuer Default and National Long-term ratings remain Stable. Alfa's other ratings are affirmed at Short-term B and Support 4. Alfa's outstanding senior unsecured debt issues are also upgraded to BB- from B+ and its subordinated debt issue due December 2015 to B+ from B-. The two-notch upgrade of the subordinated debt reflects the rules-based, rather than recoveries-based, approach to assigning Recovery Ratings to issues of entities rated BB- and above. As reported in the TCR-Europe on July 17, Moody's Investors Service upgraded Alfa Bank's Financial Strength Rating to D from D- and changed its outlook to stable from positive. At the same time, the bank's Ba2 long-term foreign currency deposit and senior unsecured debt ratings have been affirmed with their corresponding outlooks changed to stable. The bank's Not-Prime short-term foreign currency deposit and debt ratings and their outlook remain unchanged. BRASOVSKAYA FURNITURE: Court Names Y. Kayturov to Manage Assets --------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Bryansk Region appointed Mr. Y. Kayturov as Insolvency Manager for OJSC Brasovskaya Furniture Factory. He can be reached at: Y. Kayturov Kanatnyj Per. 5-312 241050 Bryansk Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A09-3529/06-8. The Arbitration Court of Bryansk Region is located at: Room 602 Trudovoy Per. 5 Bryansk Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: OJSC Brasovskaya Furniture Factory Lesozavodskaya Str. 17 Lokot' Bryansk Region Russia EXPERIENCE CJSC: Court Names I. Gorn as Insolvency Manager ---------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Moscow Region appointed Mr. I. Gorn as Insolvency Manager for CJSC Insurance Company Experience. He can be reached at: I. Gorn Post User Box 183 127018 Moscow Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A40-62130/06-44-1119B. The Arbitration Court of Moscow is located at: Novaya Basmannaya Str. 10 Moscow Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: CJSC Insurance Company Experience Leningskaya Sloboda Str. 9 109280 Moscow Region Russia GALANT OJSC: Court Names D. Ivanov as Insolvency Manager -------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region appointed Mr. D. Ivanov as Insolvency Manager for OJSC Tikhvinskiy Factory Galant. He can be reached at: D. Ivanov Post User Box 151 196105 St. Petersburg Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A56-36164/2005. The Arbitration Court of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region is located at: Hall 113 Suvorovskiy Pr. 50/52 St. Petersburg Russia The Debtor can be reached at: OJSC Tikhvinskiy Factory Galant Borovaya Str. 1 Tikhvin 187500 Leningrad Region Russia KRASNYE GORKI: Samara Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for Jan. 16 ----------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Samara Region will convene at 1:25 p.m. on Jan. 16, 2007, to hear the bankruptcy supervision procedure on LLC Agricultural Company Krasnye Gorki. The case is docketed under Case No. A55-14891/2006(48). The Temporary Insolvency Manager is: A. Chirkizov Post User Box 3167 460001 Orenburg Region Russia The Arbitration Court of Samara Region is located at: Avrory Str. 148 Samara Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: LLC Agricultural Company Krasnye Gorki Sovetskaya Str. 1 Stavropolskiy Region Piskaly 445139 Samara Region Russia KUMINSKAYA TIMBER: Court Names Y. Kostylev as Insolvency Manager ---------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Khanty-Mansiyskiy Autonomous Region appointed Mr. Y. Kostylev as Insolvency Manager for CJSC Kuminskaya Timber Industry Enterprise. He can be reached at: Y. Kostylev Titova Str. 26A Mezhdurezhenskiy Kondinskiy Region 628200 Khanty-Mansiyskiy Autonomous Region-Yugra Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A75-2964/2006. The Arbitration Court of Khanty-Mansiyskiy Autonomous Region is located at: Lenina Str. 54/1 Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: CJSC Kuminskaya Timber Industry Enterprise Titova Str. 26A Mezhdurezhenskiy Kondinskiy Region 628200 Khanty-Mansiyskiy Autonomous Region-Yugra Russia KUZNETSK-MEAT CJSC: Court Names A. Sobitnyuk to Manage Assets ------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Penza Region appointed Mr. A. Sobitnyuk as Insolvency Manager for CJSC Kuznetsk-Meat (TIN 5819001447). He can be reached at: A. Sobitnyuk Post User Box 969 Dimitrovograd 433513 Ulyanovsk Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A49-2412/2005-426/20. The Arbitration Court of Penza Region is located at: Belinskogo Str. 2 440600 Penza Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: CJSC Kuznetsk-Meat Pravdy Str. 86 Kuznetsk Penza Region Russia MOSAIC COMPANY: Fitch Affirms BB- Issuer Default Rating ------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings affirmed and removed The Mosaic Company from Rating Watch Evolving, where it was originally placed on July 26 of this year. Fitch has also assigned ratings to new issues following Mosaic's refinancing completed late last week. Fitch's rating actions affect around US$2.5 billion of outstanding debt, including the undrawn US$450 million revolving credit facility and US$1.06 billion of term debt. The Rating Outlook is Stable. Fitch affirms the following ratings: The Mosaic Company -- Issuer Default Rating at BB-; and -- Senior secured revolver rating at BB+. Mosaic Global Holdings -- IDR at BB-; -- Senior unsecured notes at BB; and -- Senior unsecured notes and debentures at BB-. Phosphate Acquisition Partnership LP -- IDR at BB-; and -- Senior secured note rating at BB-. Fitch has withdrawn Mosaic Global Holdings senior secured term loan rating at BB+. Fitch has assigned: The Mosaic Company -- Senior secured term loans rating BB+; and -- Senior unsecured notes rating BB. Mosaic Colonsay ULC -- IDR BB-; and -- Senior secured term loan rating BB+. An IDR of BB- for Mosaic and its issuing subsidiaries reflects the company's good market positions in the global potash and phosphate markets, and its improving earnings profile. The ratings continue to be tempered by Mosaic's high debt level and modest cash flow. Fitch anticipates an improvement in cash flow over the next year as changes to the phosphate cost structure become apparent; however, the amount of cash flow improvement remains uncertain. Additionally, market dynamics favor an increase in domestic fertilizer demand next spring while tightening global potash supply could support higher pricing. Fitch forecasts that Mosaic's operating EBITDA-to-gross interest expense could remain just under 4 times while total debt-to- operating EBITDA declines to 3.5x for its fiscal year 2007 with modest earnings improvement, stronger cash flow and some debt reduction. The BB+ rating on Mosaic's proposed senior secured term loans reflects the superior collateral coverage. The rating is equal to that of Mosaic's existing revolver, which would share in the same collateral package. The BB rating on Mosaic's new 7.375% senior notes due 2014 and 7.625% senior notes due 2016 is one notch higher that the IDR of BB- due primarily to the notes' guarantees from domestic and certain foreign subsidiaries. The rating also reflects the new notes senior unsecured position relative to a substantial amount of senior secured debt upon the closing of the refinancing. In a worst case scenario, senior secured debt could be as high as US$1.5 billion, assuming a fully drawn revolver, compared to around US$1.4 billion of unsecured debt. The IDR of BB- at Mosaic Colonsay reflects its position as a wholly owned subsidiary of Mosaic. The BB+ rating on Mosaic Colonsay's existing term loan reflects its collateral position. This term loan would share the credit facility collateral with the revolver and new term loans at parent Mosaic. The Stable Rating Outlook reflects Fitch's expectation for modest improvement in earnings and cash flow, which will allow for the start of debt reduction over the next twelve months. Improving global fertilizer industry dynamics and anticipated cost improvements in Mosaic's phosphate business support Fitch's view on improving cash flow and the likelihood of modest debt reduction near term. The Mosaic Company is one of the largest global suppliers of phosphate and potash fertilizers. Mosaic earned around US$655.9 million in EBITDA on US$5.2 billion in revenue LTM Aug. 31, 2006; the company had US$2.6 billion in debt at that time. NESTEROVSKIY SPIRIT: Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for Jan. 30 ---------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Ryazan Region will convene at 2:30 p.m. on Jan. 30, 2007, to hear the bankruptcy supervision procedure on OJSC Nesterovskiy Spirit Distillery. The case is docketed under Case No. A54-47777/2006 S20. The Temporary Insolvency Manager is: I. Khlystov Post User Box 155 390035 Ryazan Region Russia The Arbitration Court of Ryazan Region is located at: Pochtovaya Str. 43/44 Ryazan Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: OJSC Nesterovskiy Spirit Distillery Zavodskaya Str. 11 Nesterova Pitelenskiy Region 391621 Ryazan Region Russia OLENINSKIY DIARY: Court Names A. Lebedev as Insolvency Manager -------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Tver Region appointed Mr. A. Lebedev as Insolvency Manager for Municipal Enterprise Oleninskiy Diary. He can be reached at: A. Lebedev Post User Box 2616 170026 Tver Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A66-6225/2006. The Arbitration Court of Tver Region is located at: Room 7 Sovetskaya Str. 23b Tver Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: Municipal Enterprise Oleninskiy Diary Olenino 172400 Tver Region Russia ORGERSBANK: Fitch Keeps B- Default Rating on Watch Positive ----------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings is keeping Russia-based Orgersbank's ratings of Issuer Default B-, Short-term B, Support 5, and National Long- term BB+ on Rating Watch Positive. The Individual D rating is affirmed. The keeping of the ratings at the current levels, for the time being, follows the completion of a full review of Orges' financial position, and reflects the bank's limited franchise, concentrations on both sides of the balance sheet and modest profitability. The ratings also take into account its robust asset quality supported by a favorable economic environment, a moderate level of market risk and reasonable liquidity position. On Nov. 8, following the announcement that Nordea Bank AB, a leading financial institution in the Nordic region, will purchase a controlling stake in Orgres, Fitch put the bank's ratings on RWP, reflecting the increasing probability of support for the bank should the transaction go through. Fitch believes that Orgres' stand-alone financial position could also benefit significantly from this transaction mainly through improved funding and access to Nordea's product and risk management expertise. Orgres's ratings will be revised upon the completion of the transaction, with the Issuer Default rating likely to be upgraded to investment grade. Orgres is a mid-sized Moscow based bank with a primary focus on the SME and retail sectors. The bank operates 37 branches and outlets in five regions, and is further expanding its regional presence, both organically and by acquisitions. Orgres also operates as a settlement center for the Russian regional interbank market, in particular due to its participation in the Interbank Clearing System. SEVERSTAL OAO: Hikes Authorized Capital Following Share Issue ------------------------------------------------------------- Shareholders of OAO Severstal exercised their pre-emptive rights to acquire 91% of the company's additional share issue, AK&M says. The shareholders acquired a total of 76,916,692 of shares at RUR0.01 apiece. Unplaced shares amount to 8,083,308. Following the share issue, Severstal's authorized capital will increase from RUR9.31 million RUR10.157 million. About Severstal Headquartered in Cherepovets, Russia, OAO Severstal -- http://www.severstal.com/-- is the country's largest steel producer, with steel production of 17.1 million tons in 2005. The Company owns Severstal North America, the fifth largest integrated steel maker in the U.S. with 2005 production of 2.7 million tons, and Lucchini, Italy's second largest steel group with 2005 production of 3.5 million tons. Severstal is one of the world's lowest cost and most profitable steel producers, with 2005 EBITDA per ton of around EUR150 per ton. As of Dec. 31, 2005, Severstal had US$10.75 billion in total assets, US$3.66 billion in total liabilities and US$7.09 billion in total shareholders' equity. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on July 5, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services kept its 'B+' long-term corporate credit rating on Russian steelmaker OAO Severstal on CreditWatch with positive implications following the consolidation of the company's mining assets. The rating was placed on CreditWatch on May 26, following the announcement of a previously agreed merger between Severstal and Luxembourg-based steelmaker Arcelor S.A. This merger was cancelled on June 30. As reported in the TCR-Europe on June 28, Fitch Ratings maintained the Rating Watch Positive status for OAO Severstal's ratings of Issuer Default BB-, senior unsecured BB-, Short-term B and National Long-term A+. Severstal, which raised just over US$1 billion placing shares in London this month, plans to acquire more assets on the way to becoming the world's second-largest steel maker, its 41-year-old billionaire owner, Alexei Mordashov, has said. SOUTHERN TELECOM: Ends Term of Two Management Board Members ----------------------------------------------------------- The Board of Directors of Southern Telecommunications Co. terminated the powers of Lyudmila Ivanovna Devyatkina and Yevgeny Nikolaevich Poyarkov as the members of UTK's Management Board before the appointed time. The Board of Directors also changed the numerical composition of UTK's Management Board from nine to seven members. About the Company Headquartered in Krasnodar, Russia, Southern Telecommunications Co. -- http://www.stcompany.ru/-- provides local, long- distance, and cellular telephone, paging and telegraph services. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 30, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services raised its long-term corporate credit rating on Russia-based fixed-line telecommunications operator Southern Telecommunications Co. (OJSC) to 'B-' from 'CCC+', in light of the company's improving financial risk profile. S&P said the outlook is stable. At the same time, Standard & Poor's raised its long-term Russia national scale rating on STC to 'ruBBB' from 'ruBB'. STC is the incumbent fixed-line telecoms operator in the southern region of Russia. Southern Telecommunications carries Moody's Investors' Service's Caa1 issuer rating and B3 long-term corporate family rating since 2004. STERLING GROUP: Moscow Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for May 15 ----------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Moscow will convene at May 15, 2007, to hear the bankruptcy supervision procedure on CJSC Sterling Group (tin 7730078098). The case is docketed under Case No. A40-39709/06-78-816 B. The Temporary Insolvency Manager is: N. Bychkova Post User Box 21 109469 Moscow Region Russia The Arbitration Court of Moscow is located at: Novaya Basmannaya Str. 10 Moscow Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: CJSC Sterling Group Building 1 Bolshaya Dorogomilovskaya Str. 14 121059 Moscow Region Region TATNEFT OAO: Earns RUR45 Billion for January-October 2006 --------------------------------------------------------- The Board of Directors of OAO Tatneft has reviewed the results of executing OAO Tatneft budget for 10 months of 2006 and has approved the budget for December of the current year. The Board has discussed the results of OAO Tatneft financial and business activity for the nine months of 2006. The amount of 19,102,000 tons of crude oil has been produced for the reporting period accounting for the excess in the amount of 41,000 tons of crude oil versus a similar period of the previous year. The revenues from selling the shipped production of OAO Tatneft amounted to RUR140 billion and increased by 8.8% versus a respective period of the previous year. The Company's financial and business activity resulted in earning over RUR45 billion of balance sheet profit. OAO Tatneft continues to introduce various new technologies in drilling and crude oil production. Some 18 multibranch downhole splitters with an average production rate of 11 tons per day and 23 horizontal wells with an average production rate of 7.4 tons per day have been drilled and commissioned for the reporting period. Radial drilling projects have been implemented at 39 wells resulting in a 1.5-fold increase of the production rate. The Board of Directors has been presented the information about OAO Tatneft incremental growth of reserve base for the year 2006 and the incremental reserve growth tasks for the year 2007. The company holds 77 licensees for development of 79 fields in the Republic of Tatarstan and also in Ulyanovsk and Samara areas and the Nenetz Autonomous Okrug. The Company received 10 licensees in 2006 including seven licenses for prospecting and appraisal of the crude oil deposits. In accordance with evaluation of Miller & Lents Company the proved, probable and possible reserves of crude oil amount to 1 billion 192,000,000 tons allowing to provide for the production of crude in the area for a period of 33 years. The incremental growth of OAO Tatneft reserves was 1.2 times higher than the production volume during the last decade period. It is expected that the volume of prospecting and exploration drilling will amount to 50,000 meters of rock penetration in 2006. The Board of Directors has positively assessed the work performed and has assigned the Executive Management Board to actively proceed with studying the oil bearing perspectives in the western regions of Tatarstan. The Board of Directors has reviewed the information about the construction of the Oil Refining and Petrochemical Plants Complex in Nizhnekamsk. It has been acknowledged that the works at the construction site are performed in accordance with the earlier elaborated schedule. The Board of Directors has also reviewed a number of issues in relation with preparation to the commemorative event: production of the three billionth ton of crude oil. The Board of Directors has also reviewed a number of other issues of financial and business activity of OAO Tatneft. About Tatneft Headquartered in Tatartan, Russia, Tatneft JSC -- http://www.tatneft.ru/eng/-- explores for, produces, refines and markets crude oil. The company operates a chain of retain gasoline filling stations and exports some of its petrochemical products to former Soviet Union countries and Europe. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 23, Fitch Ratings upgraded Tatarstan-based Tatneft's Issuer Default rating to B+ from B and affirmed the Short-term rating at B. Fitch said the outlook remains Positive. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Aug. 28, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services withdrew its 'B-' long-term corporate credit rating on Russia-based oil company Tatneft OAO. The rating had been placed on CreditWatch with negative implications on April 14, due to a continuing lack of consistent information on the company's financial position. TORZHOKSKAYA GARMENT: Court Names A. Glebova to Manage Assets ------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Tver Region appointed Ms. A. Glebova as Insolvency Manager for CJSC Tokorzhskaya Garment Factory. She can be reached at: A. Glebova Post User Box 402 OPS-100 Tver Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A66-2800/2005. The Arbitration Court of Tver Region is located at: Room 7 Sovetskaya Str. 23b Tver Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: CJSC Torzhokskaya Garment Factory Krasnyj Gorodok 1 Torzhok Tver Region Russia UZH-URAL-LEATHER: Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for January 18 ---------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Chelyabinsk Region will convene at 2:00 p.m. on Jan. 18, 2007, to hear the bankruptcy supervision procedure on OJSC Uzh-Ural-Leather. The case is docketed under Case No. A76-33123/2005-52-180. The Temporary Insolvency Manager is: K. Sergeev Office 615 Lenina Str. 81 454080 Chelyabinsk Region Russia The Arbitration Court of Chelyabinsk Region is located at: Vorovskogo Str. 2 454091 Chelyabinsk Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: OJSC Uzh-Ural-Leather Kozhzavodskaya Str. 1 454084 Chelyabinsk Region Russia UZLOVSKAYA GARMENT: Court Names N. Pavlov as Insolvency Manager --------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Moscow Region appointed Mr. N. Pavlov as Insolvency Manager for LLC Trading Company of Uzlovskaya Garment Factory (TIN 7724190246). He can be reached at: N. Pavlov Building 2 Stolovyj Per. 6 121069 Moscow Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A40-33709/06-44-480b. The Arbitration Court of Moscow is located at: Novaya Basmannaya Str. 10 Moscow Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: LLC Trading Company of Uzlovskaya Garment Factory Kashirskoye Shosse 13-3 115230 Moscow Region Russia VOLGOGRADSKIY FACTORY: Court Names M. Voloshkin to Manage Assets ---------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Volgograd Region appointed Mr. M. Voloshkin as Insolvency Manager for OJSC Volgogradskiy Factory of Irrigative Equipment. He can be reached at: M. Voloshkin Post User Box 1927 400087 Volgograd Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A12-29239/05-s49. The Debtor can be reached at: OJSC Volgogradskiy Factory of Irrigative Equipment Institutskaya Str. 8a Yasnogorsk 400002 Volgograd Region Russia TULSKIYE ENGINEERING: Court Names M. Voloshkin to Manage Assets --------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Tula Region appointed Mr. M. Voloshkin as Insolvency Manager for OJSC Tulskiye Engineering Plants. He can be reached at: M. Voloshkin Zavodskaya Str. 3 Yasnogorsk Tula Region Russia The Court commenced bankruptcy proceedings against the company after finding it insolvent. The case is docketed under Case No. A68-4/B-06. The Arbitration Court of Tula Region is located at: Hall 35 Sovetskaya Str. 112 Tula Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: OJSC Tulskiye Engineering Plants Zavodskaya Str. 3 Yasnogorsk Tula Region Russia TSON OJSC: Asset Sale Slated for December 21 -------------------------------------------- The insolvency manager, the bidding organizer for OJSC Agricultural Company Tson, will open a public auction for the company's properties at 11:00 a.m. on Dec. 21 at: The Insolvency Manager, the Bidding Organizer Office 20-22 2nd floor Leskova Str. 19 Orel Region Russia The company has set a RUR1,221,710 as a starting price for the auctioned assets. Interested participants have until 5:00 p.m. on Dec. 15 to deposit an amount equivalent to 20% of the starting price to: OJSC Agricultural Company Tson Settlement Account 40702810700010000575 in OJSC VBRR in Branch in Orel BIK 045402775 Correspondent Account 3010181070000000775 TIN 5725002364 KPP 572501001 Bidding documents must be submitted to: The Insolvency Manager, the Bidding Organizer Office 20-22 2nd floor Leskova Str. 19 Orel Region Russia The Debtor can be reached at: OJSC Agricultural Company Tson Uritskiy Region Orel Region Russia ===================== S W I T Z E R L A N D ===================== CCR CLASSIC: St. Gallen Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings ----------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of St. Gallen commenced bankruptcy proceedings against LLC CCR Classic Car Restauration on Oct. 24. The Debtor can be reached at: LLC CCR Classic Car Restauration Lochriet 8890 Flums St. Gallen Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of St. Gallen can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of St. Gallen Branch Buchs, Yves Beljean 9471 Buchs St. Gallen Switzerland EURO DISNEY: Center-Tainment Fails to Submit Formal Takeover Bid ---------------------------------------------------------------- French financial regulatory body Autorite des Marches Financiers told Reuters that Swiss company Center-Tainment AG has failed to submit a formal takeover bid for Euro Disney SCA. The AMF had given Center-Tainment until Dec. 4 to formalize its takeover offer or it will not be allowed to bid for Euro Disney for the next six months. Center-Tainment CEO Ulf H. Werner disclosed at a press conference last week that the company will launch a bid in the coming days when its legal counsel recovers from illness and will notify the AMF of its plans, AFX News Limited relates. According to Bloomberg, Center-Tainment is offering a share swap deal that values Euro Disney shares at 11 cents each. Euro Disney's biggest shareholders include Walt Disney (39.8%) and Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed bin Talal (10%). About the Company Headquartered in France, Euro Disney S.C.A. -- http://www.eurodisney.com/-- and its subsidiaries operate the Disneyland Resort Paris, which includes Disneyland Park, Walt Disney Studios Park, seven themed hotels with approximately 5,800 rooms (excluding 2,074 additional third party rooms located on the site), two convention centers, Disney Village, a dining, shopping and entertainment center, and a 27-hole golf facility. The Group's operating activities also include the management and development of the 2,000-hectare site, which currently includes approximately 1,000 hectares of undeveloped land. * * * Delisting Market trends and changes in the regulatory environment, combined with the high cost of maintaining separate listings relative to historical trading volumes, have led to the Company's decision to cancel its share listings on the London Stock Exchange and Euronext Brussels. Following the cancellation of the listings, investors will still be able to trade in the Company's shares on Euronext Paris. In February 2005, the Company implemented a comprehensive restructuring of the Group's financial obligations. The restructuring included amendments to the Group's principal financing agreements as well as its license and management agreements with The Walt Disney Company; changes to the Group's organizational structure; and a EUR253.3 million share capital increase. Euro Disney SCA incurred consecutive net losses for the last five years in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The Company reported net losses of EUR46.5 million in 2005, EUR77.5 million in 2004, EUR54.4 million in 2003, EUR67.3 million in 2002, and EUR50.6 million in 2001. Management expects that even under its growth assumptions, the Group will incur a significant aggregate amount of net losses over the next several fiscal years. GOLDSTEIN ROSENBERG: St. Gallen Court Starts Bankruptcy Process --------------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of St. Gallen commenced bankruptcy proceedings against Goldstein, Rosenberg & Partner Limited on Oct. 24. The Debtor can be reached at: Goldstein, Rosenberg & Partner Limited Stockport (Cheshire/GB), St. Gallen Kornhausstrasse 3 9000 St. Gallen Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of St. Gallen can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of St. Gallen Urs Benz 9001 St. Gallen Switzerland HC ZENTRALSCHWEIZ: Court Suspends Bankruptcy Proceedings -------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of Luzern-Stadt suspended the bankruptcy proceedings of JSC HC Zentralschweiz on Nov. 16, pursuant to Article 230 of the Swiss Bankruptcy Code. The bankruptcy proceedings will be declared closed once creditors fail to submit their claims and pay a CHF5,000 deposit. The right for the additional deposit is retained. The Debtor, declared bankrupt on Sept. 1, can be contacted at: JSC HC Zentralschweiz Tribschenstrasse 9 6005 Lucerne Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt 6000 Luzern 5 Lucerne Switzerland HEKA HANDELS: Lucerne Court Suspends Bankruptcy Proceedings ----------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of Luzern-Land suspended the bankruptcy proceedings of LLC Heka Handels on Nov. 6, pursuant to Article 230 of the Swiss Bankruptcy Code. The bankruptcy proceedings will be declared closed once creditors fail to submit their claims and pay a CHF4,500 deposit. The right for the additional deposit is retained. The Debtor, declared bankrupt on Sept. 1, can be contacted at: LLC Heka Handels 6030 Ebikon Lucerne Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Land can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Land 6011 Kriens Lucerne Switzerland JASARI KUNSTSTOFFE: Liestal Court Suspends Bankruptcy Process ------------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of Liestal suspended the bankruptcy proceedings of LLC Jasari Kunststoffe on Nov. 13, pursuant to Article 230 of the Swiss Bankruptcy Code. The bankruptcy proceedings will be declared closed once creditors fail to submit their claims and pay a CHF4,000 deposit. The right for the additional deposit is retained. The Debtor, declared bankrupt on Sept. 28, can be contacted at: LLC Jasari Kunststoffe Netzibodenstrasse 34 4133 Pratteln Basel-Landschaft Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of Liestal can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of Liestal 4410 Liestal Basel-Landschaft Switzerland MADER TREUHAND: St. Gallen Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings -------------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of St. Gallen commenced bankruptcy proceedings against LLC Mader Treuhand on Oct. 18. The Debtor can be reached at: LLC Mader Treuhand Rickenstrasse 25 8737 Gommiswald St. Gallen Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of St. Gallen can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of St. Gallen Branch Kaltbrunn, Katharina Kuster 8722 Kaltbrunn St. Gallen Switzerland OETTERLI JSC: Lucerne Court Closes Bankruptcy Proceedings --------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of Luzern-Stadt entered Oct. 19 an order closing the bankruptcy proceedings of JSC Oetterli. The Debtor can be reached at: JSC Oetterli Obergrundstrasse 109 6003 Lucerne Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt 6000 Luzern 5 Lucerne Switzerland RUEDI BACHMANN: March Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings --------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of March commenced bankruptcy proceedings against JSC Ruedi Bachmann Mode on Oct. 24. The Debtor can be reached at: JSC Ruedi Bachmann Mode Marktstr. 2 8853 Lachen Schwyz Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of March can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of March 8853 Lachen Schwyz Switzerland TELOS HOLDING: Lucerne Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings ---------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of Luzern-Stadt commenced bankruptcy proceedings against JSC Telos Holding on Sept. 28. The Debtor can be reached at: JSC Telos Holding Pilatusstrasse 38 6002 Lucerne Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt 6000 Luzern 5 Lucerne Switzerland X-PHONE LLC: Lucerne Court Suspends Bankruptcy Proceedings ---------------------------------------------------------- The Bankruptcy Court of Luzern-Stadt suspended the bankruptcy proceedings of LLC x-phone (fka LLC Trendcall Telemarketing) on Nov. 16, pursuant to Article 230 of the Swiss Bankruptcy Code. The bankruptcy proceedings will be declared closed once creditors fail to submit their claims and pay a CHF8,000 deposit. The right for the additional deposit is retained. The Debtor, declared bankrupt on Sept. 1, can be contacted at: LLC x-phone Arsenalstrasse 4 6005 Luzern Lucerne Switzerland The Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt can be reached at: Bankruptcy Service of Luzern-Stadt 6000 Luzern 5 Lucerne Switzerland =========== T U R K E Y =========== HD CAPITAL: Fitch Assigns B Rating on EUR50-Million Bond -------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings assigned HD Capital S.A.'s EUR50 million 10.75% loan participation notes maturing in 2011 a final foreign currency senior unsecured rating of B and a final Recovery Rating of RR4. HD Capital S.A. is the debt-issuing vehicle of Turkey-based Profilo Telra Elektronik Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. The final ratings on the LPNs follows a review of the final terms and conditions conforming to information already received when Fitch assigned the expected ratings of B/RR4 on Oct. 20, as well as receipt of satisfactory legal opinions. Fitch's expected ratings were based on an initial prospective EUR100 million debt issuance. HD Capital has the sole purpose of using the LPNs proceeds to finance a loan to Profilo as set out in a loan agreement, the rights and benefits of which are charged to the benefit of LPN noteholders. The B rating of the LPNs is in line with Profilo's Issuer Default rating of B published on Oct. 20. Proceeds of the notes are used to fund working capital requirements, refinance existing debt and for general corporate purposes. The notes constitute direct, unsecured and unconditional obligations of Profilo. The notes rank equally with all other present or future unsecured and un-subordinated obligations of Profilo. The terms and conditions of the loan agreement include a limitation on Profilo's debt, using a maximum leverage ratio of 4x and consolidated fixed charge coverage ratio of 2.25x. However, the final terms and conditions of the LPNs include an additional investor protection covenant in the form of a put option whereby HD Capital will redeem the notes at par plus accrued interest by Dec. 7, 2009. Interest on the notes are payable annually. There are also restrictions on dividend payments by Profilo. Furthermore, upon asset sales by Profilo above a certain amount, noteholders can request that these proceeds be used to prepay their LPNs at par. In the event of a change of control relating to Profilo that results in a rating downgrade, noteholders have the right to require the issuer to prepay their LPNs. There are also covenants relating to transactions with affiliates, mergers and disposals as described in the loan agreement. The governing law of the loan agreement, including the guarantees in place and the LPNs, is English and the jurisdiction is the courts of England. ============= U K R A I N E ============= ALFA-BANK: Eyes US$2-Billion Investment in Indonesia ---------------------------------------------------- Alfa-Bank's President Peter Aven met with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during the latter's state visit to Russia. Discussing the possibilities of expanding Russian-Indonesian economic cooperation, Mr. Aven announced the intentions of the Alfa Group to invest in telecommunication and other sectors of Indonesian economy to the amount of up to US$2 billion. The President of Indonesia welcomed this announcement and declared that his government will back this initiative. President Yudhoyono has underlined that the expansion of cooperation between Russia and Indonesia, covering the whole spectrum of mutual interests, is in line with the intentions of both countries' presidents. "Russian companies have a chance to take a deserved place among major international investors, and we are not going to miss this opportunity," Mr. Aven said. "We believe that there is a huge potential for successful development of business for Russian companies in Indonesia in particular, and throughout the South- East Asia as well. Alfa-Group has extensive investment expertise in foreign telecom markets, in particular, the largest ever investment deal of Russian business with the purchase of shares in Turkcell, a Turkish telecom company. We have a clear intention to use our experience in Indonesia in a way that will promote strengthening of economic cooperation between our two countries." About Alfa Bank Headquartered in Moscow, Russia, Alfa Bank -- http://www.alfabank.com/-- provides services in every key sector of the financial service industry, including corporate banking, retail banking, investment banking, trade finance, insurance and asset management. Alfa Bank's branch network has grown to 121, including subsidiary banks in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and the Netherlands. In 2005 total assets of the Alfa Bank and its subsidiaries grew to US$9.8 billion, total equity increased to US$855.8 million, loan portfolio net of provisions increased to US$5.7 billion. The net profit for a year 2005 was US$180.6 million. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 6, Fitch Ratings assigned Alfa MTN Issuance Limited's US$400 million 7.875% notes issue due October 2009 a Long-term BB- rating. The proceeds from the issue will be on-lent to Alfa Bank, rated Issuer Default BB- /Outlook Stable, Short-term B, Support 4, Individual C/D, and National Long-term A+/Outlook Stable. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Sept. 12, Fitch Ratings upgraded Russia-based Alfa Bank's ratings to Issuer Default BB- from B+, Individual C/D from D and National Long-term to A+ from A. The Outlooks on the Issuer Default and National Long-term ratings remain Stable. Alfa's other ratings are affirmed at Short-term B and Support 4. Alfa's outstanding senior unsecured debt issues are also upgraded to BB- from B+ and its subordinated debt issue due December 2015 to B+ from B-. The two-notch upgrade of the subordinated debt reflects the rules-based, rather than recoveries-based, approach to assigning Recovery Ratings to issues of entities rated BB- and above. As reported in the TCR-Europe on July 17, Moody's Investors Service upgraded Alfa Bank's Financial Strength Rating to D from D- and changed its outlook to stable from positive. At the same time, the bank's Ba2 long-term foreign currency deposit and senior unsecured debt ratings have been affirmed with their corresponding outlooks changed to stable. The bank's Not-Prime short-term foreign currency deposit and debt ratings and their outlook remain unchanged. ALFA BANK: Forms PatriotCapital with NPO OboronReformProekt ----------------------------------------------------------- Alfa Bank and NPO OboronReformProekt have established PatriotCapital company to promote the formation of financially sound integrated structures in the defense sector. The form of incorporation is a limited liability company with its registered capital of RUR400 million. The founders have equal shares (50% each) in the capital and equally divided votes on the board of directors of the new company. PatriotCapital will be involved in the process of solving problems that face defense enterprises through optimization of their financial operations, debt restructuring, trust management of assets and rendering assistance to fight raiders. Alfa Bank intends to encourage investments for the development, modernization and reconstruction of these enterprises. Alexander Chernikov, Director of OboronReformProekt, said Alfa Bank was chosen owing to its "hands-on skills at working with specific and viable projects." Within the framework of the Federal Program for Restructuring and Conversion of the Defense Sector in Russia through 2010 it is planned to establish 40-45 vertically integrated holdings incorporating nearly 46% of the enterprises listed the register of the military-industrial complex. "Most of them are federal state unitary enterprises," Mr. Chernikov said. "They are going to be transformed into joint stock companies -- and in such a way that the state would retain power over them, including financial control. Here the experience of Alfa Bank would be invaluable." "It is not a classical lending," Alexandr Bugaevsky, senior vice-president at Alfa Bank, said. "One of the objectives for PatriotCapital lies in helping enterprises of the military industrial complex to become creditworthy. Alfa Bank will provide loans and assist clients in accessing open capital markets." "We will be working as sort of a tool that in a crisis situation would promptly analyze the problem and advise on how to overcome it, furnishing financial assistance if necessary," Alexei Trufanov, chairman of the board at OboronReformProekt, said. "This is aimed to make the enterprise able to improve the situation and at the same time retain state control." Alfa Bank is actively developing cooperation with the largest state-run companies and government agencies. Early in 2006, Alfa Bank signed two agreements for cooperation with the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation and the Federal Agency for Atomic Energy (Rosatom) to become a financial advisor and investment projects manager for both institutions. NPO OboronReformProekt -- a company founded by Oboronimpex -- was established in February 2006 with the objective to monitor financial and economic situation of defense enterprises while executing export contracts. NPO is developing measures to prevent hostile take-over initiatives, and is preparing and implementing anti-crisis programs for defense enterprises. About Alfa Bank Headquartered in Moscow, Russia, Alfa Bank -- http://www.alfabank.com/-- provides services in every key sector of the financial service industry, including corporate banking, retail banking, investment banking, trade finance, insurance and asset management. Alfa Bank's branch network has grown to 121, including subsidiary banks in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and the Netherlands. In 2005 total assets of the Alfa Bank and its subsidiaries grew to US$9.8 billion, total equity increased to US$855.8 million, loan portfolio net of provisions increased to US$5.7 billion. The net profit for a year 2005 was US$180.6 million. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 6, Fitch Ratings assigned Alfa MTN Issuance Limited's US$400 million 7.875% notes issue due October 2009 a Long-term BB- rating. The proceeds from the issue will be on-lent to Alfa Bank, rated Issuer Default BB- /Outlook Stable, Short-term B, Support 4, Individual C/D, and National Long-term A+/Outlook Stable. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Sept. 12, Fitch Ratings upgraded Russia-based Alfa Bank's ratings to Issuer Default BB- from B+, Individual C/D from D and National Long-term to A+ from A. The Outlooks on the Issuer Default and National Long-term ratings remain Stable. Alfa's other ratings are affirmed at Short-term B and Support 4. Alfa's outstanding senior unsecured debt issues are also upgraded to BB- from B+ and its subordinated debt issue due December 2015 to B+ from B-. The two-notch upgrade of the subordinated debt reflects the rules-based, rather than recoveries-based, approach to assigning Recovery Ratings to issues of entities rated BB- and above. As reported in the TCR-Europe on July 17, Moody's Investors Service upgraded Alfa Bank's Financial Strength Rating to D from D- and changed its outlook to stable from positive. At the same time, the bank's Ba2 long-term foreign currency deposit and senior unsecured debt ratings have been affirmed with their corresponding outlooks changed to stable. The bank's Not-Prime short-term foreign currency deposit and debt ratings and their outlook remain unchanged. =========================== U N I T E D K I N G D O M =========================== ALLIED CONCRETE: Nominates Gary Stones as Liquidator ---------------------------------------------------- Gary Stones of Stones & Co. was nominated Liquidator of Allied Concrete Products Limited on Nov. 28 for the creditors' voluntary winding-up procedure. The company can be reached at: Allied Concrete Products Limited Phoenix Wharf The Docks Port Talbot West Glamorgan SA131RA United Kingdom Tel: 01792 539 254 BLEEP NORTH: Nominates Liquidator from T H Associates ----------------------------------------------------- Timothy John Hargreaves of T H Associates was nominated Liquidator of Bleep North Limited on Nov. 24 for the creditors' voluntary winding-up procedure. The company can be reached at: Bleep North Limited Communications House Lancaster Gate Leyland Lancashire PR252EX United Kingdom Tel: 01772 434 222 Fax: 01772 435 000 CONTEMPORARY FURNISHINGS: Joint Liquidators Take Over Operations ---------------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Contemporary Furnishings (U.K.) Ltd. (fka B. A. Beds & Pine Limited) confirmed Nov. 22 the appointment of T. J. Binyon and S. J. Parker of Tenon Recovery as the company's Joint Liquidators. The company can be reached at: Contemporary Furnishings (U.K.) Ltd. Joyce Dawson Way Greenwich London SE288RA United Kingdom Tel: 020 8310 0200 CONVERGENCE GROUP: Hires Administrators from Geoffrey Martin ------------------------------------------------------------ Stephen Goderski and Geoffrey Martin of Geoffrey Martin & Co. were appointed joint administrators of Convergence Group International S.A. (Company Number B57336) on Nov. 20. The administrators can be reached at: Stephen Goderski and Geoffrey Martin Geoffrey Martin & Co. St. James's House 28 Park Place Leeds LS1 2SP United Kingdom Tel: 0113 244 5141 Fax: 0113 242 3851 E-mail: geoffrey.martin@geoffreymartin.co.uk Headquartered in Luxembourg, Convergence Group International S.A. -- http://www.convergenceholdings.com/-- specializes in Internet protocol-based local multimedia distribution services by integrating telephony and computer technologies. CRYSTAL CLEAR: Appoints Joint Liquidators from Deloitte & Touche ---------------------------------------------------------------- Angus Matthew Martin and Julia Elizabeth Branson of Deloitte & Touche LLP were appointed Joint Liquidators of Crystal Clear 2006 Limited (formerly South West Acrylics Limited) on Nov. 22 for the creditors' voluntary winding-up procedure. The company can be reached at: Crystal Clear 2006 Limited Unit 2 Westbridge Industrial Estate Tavistock Devon PL198DE United Kingdom Tel: 01822 617 000 DISCOUNT AUTOPARTS: Brings In Liquidators from Grant Thornton ------------------------------------------------------------- Joseph McLean and Keith Hinds of Grant Thornton U.K. LLP were appointed Joint Liquidators of Discount Autoparts Limited on Nov. 27 for the creditors' voluntary winding-up procedure. The company can be reached at: Discount Autoparts Limited Front Street Framwellgate Moor Durham County Durham DH1 5AU United Kingdom Tel: 0191 384 7803 Fax: 0191 384 7805 ELITE SECURITY: Brings In Hurst Morrison to Administer Assets ------------------------------------------------------------- Robert C. Keyes and Paul W. Ellison of Hurst Morrison Thomson CR LLP were appointed joint administrators of Elite Security (Southern) Ltd. (Company Number 03231708) on Nov. 27. The administrators can be reached at: Robert C. Keyes and Paul W. Ellison Hurst Morrison Thomson CR LLP 5 Fairmile Henley on Thames Oxfordshire RG9 2JR United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0) 1491 579866 Fax: +44 (0) 1491 573397 E-mail: hmt@hmtgroup.co.uk Elite Security (Southern) Ltd. can be reached at: Unit 33B Kingfisher Court Newbury Berkshire RG14 5SJ United Kingdom Tel: 01635 375 20 Fax: 01635 481 88 EMPOWER INTERACTIVE: Brings In Grant Thornton as Administrators --------------------------------------------------------------- Nicholas Stewart Wood and Daniel Robert Whiteley Smith of Grant Thornton U.K. LLP were appointed joint administrators of Empower Interactive Group Ltd. (Company Number 03962498) on Nov. 24. Grant Thornton U.K. LLP -- http://www.grant-thornton.co.uk/-- provides value-added professional services as assurance services, compensation and benefits, merger and acquisition transaction services, management advisory services, tax consulting and valuation services. Headquartered in London, England, Empower Interactive Group Ltd. is engaged in software publishing, software consultancy and supply. EUROPEAN GOLF: Appoints BDO Stoy to Administer Assets ----------------------------------------------------- Shay Bannon and Antony David Nygate of BDO Stoy Hayward LLP were appointed joint administrators of European Golf Brands Holdings Ltd. (Company Number 04992286) and European Golf Brands Ltd. (Company Number 03880011) on Nov. 23. BDO Stoy Hayward -- http://www.bdo.co.uk/-- focuses on business assurance (audit), corporate advisory, tax, and investment management services, specializing in such industries as charities, educational institutions, family businesses, financial services, leisure, and hospitality. The company is the U.K. arm of BDO International and has offices in more than 15 cities throughout the U.K. Headquartered in Sittingbourne, England, European Golf Brands Holdings Ltd. and European Golf Brands Ltd. manufactures sports goods. FORD MOTOR: Fitch Lowers Ratings to B-/RR5 on Upsized Financings ---------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings downgraded Ford Motor Co.'s senior unsecured ratings to B-/RR5 from B/RR4 due to the increase in size of both the secured facilities and the senior unsecured convertible notes being offered. The upsizing of these facilities reduces expected recoveries for unsecured debtholders to between 25-30% under Fitch's recovery analysis corresponding to an RR5 rating. Ford's B Issuer Default Rating is unaffected, and the Rating Outlook remains Negative. Ford has announced its intent to increase the size of its secured revolving credit facility to US$10.5-US$11.5 billion, up from US$8 billion previously. Ford will also increase the size of its senior unsecured convertible note offering from US$3 billion to US$4.5 billion. The total amount of the financing package now being raised could total US$23 billion, up from a previous expectation of US$18 billion. As much as US$18.5 billion of this amount is expected to be on a secured basis, further impairing the position of unsecured holders. Unsecured debt outstanding that would share in recoveries in the event of a bankruptcy will expand to US$22.5 billion from around US$18 billion at Sept. 30, 2006. The increased liquidity will provide Ford with additional time and resources as it progresses in its restructuring plan, and is expected to allay any concerns regarding liquidity during 2007. Fitch downgrades the following ratings with a Negative Rating Outlook: Ford Motor Co. -- Senior unsecured debt to B-/RR5 from B/RR4. Ford Holdings, Inc. -- Senior unsecured debt to B-/RR5 from B/RR4. Ford Motor Co. of Australia -- Senior unsecured debt to B-/RR5 from B/RR4. GLYN WEBB: Names Joint Administrators from Milner Boardman ---------------------------------------------------------- Colin Burke and Darren Brookes of Milner Boardman & Partners were appointed joint administrators of Glyn Webb Wallpapers Ltd. (Company Number 01188187) on Nov. 23. Milner Boardman -- http://www.milnerboardman.co.uk/-- is an independent firm of chartered accountants and business advisers. Glyn Webb Wallpapers Ltd. can be reached at: Chandlers Wharf Bridge Road Stockton on Tees Cleveland TS18 3BA United Kingdom Tel: 01642 606 699 J W LEWIS: Creditors Confirm Voluntary Liquidation -------------------------------------------------- Creditors of J W Lewis Engineering Limited confirmed Nov. 28 the resolutions for voluntary liquidation and the appointment of John Russell and Andrew Philip Wood of The P&A Partnership as Liquidators. The company can be reached at: J W Lewis Engineering Limited Old Waleswood Colliery Mansfield Road Wales Bar Sheffield South Yorkshire S26 5PQ United Kingdom Tel: 01909 770 273 K.C. COMPONENTS: Creditors Confirm Liquidator's Appointment ----------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of K.C. Components Limited confirmed on Nov. 27 the appointment of Ian William Kings of Tenon Recovery as the company's Liquidator. Tenon Recovery -- http://www.tenongroup.com/-- provides accounting and business advice to owner-managed and private business. LUTON RECRUITMENT: Claims Filing Period Ends Jan. 2, 2007 --------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Luton Recruitment Consultants Limited have until Jan. 2, 2007, to send in their full names, their addresses and descriptions, full particulars of their debts or claims, and the names and addresses of their Solicitors (if any) to appointed Liquidator David Anthony Ingram at: Chantrey Vellacott DFK LLP Russell Square House 10-12 Russell Square London WC1B 5LF United Kingdom The company can be reached at: Luton Recruitment Consultants Limited 351 Dunstable Road Luton Bedfordshire LU4 8BY United Kingdom Tel: 01582 582 858 NASDAQ STOCK: London Mayor Calls for Probe Into LSE Takeover ------------------------------------------------------------ London Mayor Ken Livingstone has called on the U.K.'s Office of Fair Trading to initiate an in-depth inquiry into Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.'s proposed takeover of the London Stock Exchange PLC, Brian Lysaght writes for Bloomberg News. In a letter to OFT, Mr. Livingstone said, "This takeover bid by Nasdaq is an example of a weaker, less competitive body trying to take over a much more dynamic and successful one." Mr. Livingstone is concerned that the acquisition would damage London's position as a leading financial center, as well as the competitiveness of international markets. He also fears that the deal would expose the London exchange to tighter U.S. regulation, Alistair MacDonald of The Wall Street Journal relates. The mayor reiterated that the financial services industry is crucial to the local economy of London. "It is the biggest single creator of wealth and jobs that we have. We can't take a risk," he said. As previously reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov 22, Nightingale Acquisition Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. offered EUR2.7 billion (USUS$5.12 billion) bid to acquire the entire issued and to be issued ordinary and B shares of London Stock Exchange Group plc. LSE has rejected Nasdaq's bid. Nasdaq reported third quarter 2006 net income of US$30.2 million, an increase of 69.7% from US$17.8 million in the third quarter of 2005, and 81.9% from US$16.6 million in the second quarter of 2006. Alan Paul, Esq., and Ian Lopez, Esq., at Allen & Overy; and Michael Hatchard, Esq., and Eric Friedman, Esq., at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom give legal advice to Nasdaq. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is the legal counsel of LSE. The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. -- http://www.nasdaq.com/-- is the largest electronic equity securities market in the United States with approximately 3,200 companies. * * * In December 2006, Standard & Poor's Rating Services lowered its long-term counterparty credit rating on The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. to 'BB' from 'BB+'. The 'BB+' rating on Nasdaq's existing bank loan facility, which financed the initial 29% stake in the London Stock Exchange (LSE), is affirmed, while the Recovery Rating is revised to '1' from '2'. The ratings were removed from CreditWatch Negative where they were placed on Nov. 20, 2006. S&P said the outlook is stable. At the same time, Standard & Poor's has assigned our 'BB+' bank loan rating to the proposed USUS$750 million senior secured Term Loan B, USUS$2.0 billion senior secured Term Loan C, and USUS$75 million revolver to be issued by Nasdaq, as well as the USUS$500 million senior secured Term Loan C to be issued by Nightingale Acquisition Ltd., a U.K.-based subsidiary of Nasdaq. The rating agency has assigned a Recovery Rating of '1', which indicates full recovery of principal in the event of default. In addition, Standard & Poor's has assigned its 'B+' rating to the proposed USUS$1.75 billion senior unsecured bridge loan to be issued by Nasdaq and NAL. Moody's Investors Service assigned in April 2006 ratings to three new bank facilities of The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.: a USUS$750 million Senior Secured Term Loan B, a USUS$1,100 million Secured Term Loan C, and a USUS$75 million Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility. Moody's said each facility is rated Ba3 with a negative outlook. PROMINENT CMBS: Fitch Affirms BB Rating on GBP34.8-Million Notes ---------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings affirmed Prominent CMBS Funding No.1 Plc's notes due December 2032: -- GBP385 million Class A1 (XS0234097128) at AAA; -- GBP326.3 million Class A2 (XS0234098365) at AAA; -- GBP30 million Class B (XS0234098951) at AA; -- GBP76 million Class C (XS0234099256) at A; -- GBP54 million Class D at BBB; and -- GBP34.8 million Class E at BB. The affirmation follows Fitch's review of the latest investor report for the interest payment date of Sept. 20, 2006, which indicates an approaching breach of substitution criteria on the category of 'other property concentration type'. This particular category refers to any property type that does not fall into the category of office, retail or mixed. As the level for 'other property concentration type' increased to 9.91% during Q306, there was a feasible risk that the transaction might have experienced a breach of the substitution criteria in the following periods. That in turn would preclude the issuer from being able to make any further advances. In response to the issuer's request to change the substitutions criteria for the category of 'other property type' from 10% to 15%, Fitch has re-analyzed the latest pool cut for this transaction and affirmed the notes as above. Apart from the abovementioned issue, the transaction is performing according to Fitch's initial expectations. The outstanding balance on the notes decreased only minimally to GBP921.12 million from GBP1 billion in December 2005 following substitutions and prepayments. This reduction accounted to date for 8% of the initial outstanding balance on the notes. The portfolio's weighted average loan-to-value has improved slightly to 67% currently from 72.3% at XX. The interest coverage is largely unchanged at 1.56x. This transaction is a securitization of 33 U.K. commercial mortgage loans that were originated by Bank of Scotland. Initially, the issuer had the ability to substitute additional pre-identified loans from a secondary pool into the securitized pool as the original loans repaid. To date, all loans from the secondary pool have been used, which means that there will be no further substitutions. The structure benefits from a reserve fund and a liquidity facility -- both available to cover interest shortfalls on the loans as well as certain senior expenses and in the case of the reserve fund, losses -- with initial balances of GBP10 million and GBP65 million, respectively. RAFIQUES LIMITED: Hires Liquidators from Recovery hjs ----------------------------------------------------- Gordon Johnston and Shane Biddlecombe of Recovery hjs were appointed Liquidators of Rafiques Limited on Nov. 22 for the creditors' voluntary winding-up proceeding. The company can be reached at: Rafiques Limited 51 Derby Road Southampton Hampshire SO140DG United Kingdom Tel: 023 8023 1144 REFCO INC: Submits Modified First Amended Chapter 11 Plan --------------------------------------------------------- Refco Inc. and its debtor-affiliates; Marc S. Kirschner, the Chapter 11 Trustee for Refco Capital Markets, Ltd.; and the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors and the Additional Committee delivered to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York a modified First Amended Chapter 11 Plan on Dec. 4, 2006. The Plan Proponents tell Judge Robert D. Drain that all references to the Plan administrator in the Modified Plan will refer exclusively to the administration of estates of the Debtors and Refco F/X Associates, LLC. The RCM Trustee, who will wind down the RCM Estate in accordance with the terms and conditions under RCM's settlement agreement with its securities customers and unsecured creditors, will administer the RCM estate separately. With respect to classification and treatment of claims and interests of the Debtors excluding FXA, the Modified Plan provides that any allowed Class 3 Secured Lender Claims, to the extent not paid before the Plan's effective date, will be paid in full, in cash. No holder of a Class 7 Subordinated Claim against the Contributing Debtors will be entitled to any property or interest-in-property. In addition, no holder of a Class 8 Old Equity Interest will be entitled to any property, provided that the Old Equity Interest Holders have been given rights to participate in litigation and private actions trusts. Litigation & Private Actions Trusts J. Gregory Milmoe, Esq., at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, in New York, relates that a litigation trustee will serve as representative of the Debtors' estates with respect to the Contributed Claims. To the extent that any Contributed Claims cannot be transferred to the Litigation Trust because of a restriction on transferability under applicable non-bankruptcy law that is not superseded or preempted by Section 1123 or any other provision of the Bankruptcy Code, those Claims will be deemed to have been retained by the Reorganized Debtors and RCM, as applicable, to enforce and pursue the Contributed Claims on the Estates' behalf. However, he notes, all net proceeds of the Contributed Claims will be transferred to effective beneficiaries consistent with the remaining Plan provisions and a Litigation Trust Agreement. Mr. Milmoe states that the Litigation Trust will be structured in a manner that provides for Tranche A and Tranche B. All contributed claims recoveries, whether applicable to Tranche A or Tranche B, will be distributed pro rata according to the beneficial interests in Tranche A and Tranche B. Mr. Milmoe adds that beneficiaries of Tranche B Litigation Trust Interests will be the holders of Old Equity Interests who have made a Private Actions Trust Election. Those beneficiaries will share the Tranche B Litigation Trust Interests Pro Rate based on a number of shares held by interest holders or those previously held to the extent that the holder has asserted a claim related to those shares. No holder of Tranche A and Tranche B Litigation Trust Interests will have any consultation or approval rights whatsoever in respect of management and operation of the Litigation Trust. Furthermore, Mr. Milmoe discloses that beneficiaries of the Private Actions Trust will be holders of Contributing Debtors General Unsecured Claims, FXA General Unsecured Claims, RCM Securities Customer Claims, RCM FX/Unsecured Claims, and those Old Equity Interests that make the Private Actions Trust Election, who will be given interests in the Private Actions Trust to the same extent as in the Litigation Trust. To the extent that any Non-Estate Refco Claims cannot be transferred to the Private Actions Trust because of a restriction on transferability under applicable non-bankruptcy law that is not superseded or preempted by Section 1123, the Non-Estate Refco Claims will be deemed to have been retained by a grantor, as applicable, and the Private Actions Trustee will be deemed to have been designated as a representative of that grantor to enforce and pursue those Claims, Mr. Milmoe says. All net proceeds of the Non-Estate Refco Claims will be transferred to the Private Actions Trust Beneficiaries consistent with the other provisions of the Plan and the Private Actions Trust Agreement. In consideration of the litigation expenses and potential delay avoided by the withdrawal of Plan confirmation objections asserted by the Ad Hoc Committee of Equity Interest Holders of Refco, the Beneficiaries of Tranche A Litigation Trust Interests will be deemed to have transferred to each Old Equity Interest Holder who has made a Private Actions Trust Election a Pro Rata share of the Tranche B Litigation Trust Interests. Moreover, the Plan Proponents clarify that all BAWAG Contingent Proceeds, if any, will be treated as part of the Contributing Debtors Distributive Assets and will be shared between RCM and Holders of Contributing Debtors General Unsecured Claims pursuant to the Modified Plan. Distribution Provisions & Plan Releases The Modified Plan provides that any Contributing Debtors General Unsecured Claim Holders with an independent claim against any Contributing Debtor based on a contractual guarantee or other direct contractual undertaking may also recover once from the Contributing Debtors on that claim based on full underlying claim amount owed by that Contributing Debtor, as of the Petition Date, for which the guarantee or other direct contractual undertaking was provided. To obtain full benefits of the Court-approved RCM Settlement Agreement, including final allowance of Secured Lender Indemnification Claims at zero for purposes of the Chapter 11 cases, all Secured Lender Released Claims, unless previously made effective under the Early Payment Order, are deemed fully and forever released on the Plan Effective Date. A blacklined copy of Refco's Modified First Amended Plan is available at no charge at: http://bankrupt.com/misc/refcoincmodifiedchap11plan.pdf Refco LLC, an affiliate, filed for chapter 7 protection on Nov. 25, 2005 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Case No. 05-60134). Refco, LLC, is a regulated commodity futures company that has businesses in the United States, London, Asia and Canada. Refco, LLC, filed for bankruptcy protection in order to consummate the sale of substantially all of its assets to Man Financial Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Man Group plc. Albert Togut, the chapter 7 trustee, is represented by Togut, Segal & Segal LLP. On April 13, 2006, the Court appointed Marc S. Kirschner as Refco Capital Markets Ltd.'s chapter 11 trustee. Mr. Kirschner is represented by Bingham McCutchen LLP. RCM is Refco's operating subsidiary based in Bermuda. Three more affiliates of Refco, Westminster-Refco Management LLC, Refco Managed Futures LLC, and Lind-Waldock Securities LLC, filed for chapter 11 protection on June 6, 2006 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Case Nos. 06-11260 through 06-11262). Refco Commodity Management, Inc., formerly known as CIS Investments, Inc., a debtor-affiliate of Refco Inc., filed for chapter 11 protection on Oct. 16, 2006 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Case No. 06-12436). RCMI's exclusive period to file a chapter 11 plan expires on Feb. 13, 2007. (Refco Bankruptcy News, Issue No. 49; Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., http://bankrupt.com/newsstand/or 215/945-7000). REVLON CONSUMER: Plans to Increase Term Loan to US$840 Million -------------------------------------------------------------- Revlon Consumer Products Corp., a wholly owned operating subsidiary of Revlon Inc., plans to refinance its existing credit agreement as part of the Company's overall plans to improve cash flow and strengthen its balance sheet and capital structure. As part of the refinancing, RCPC expects to refinance and replace its existing US$800 million term loan with a new 5-year US$840 million term loan facility and amend its existing US$160 million multi-currency revolving credit facility and extend its maturity through the same 5-year period. It is expected that the 2006 Term Loan Facility would be secured by substantially the same collateral package and guarantees that secure RCPC's existing term loan facility and the 2006 Revolving Credit Facility will continue to be secured by its existing collateral package and guarantees. While there can be no assurances that the 2006 Credit Facilities will be finalized and closed, if RCPC completes this refinancing, the Company believes that it will result in annual interest savings due to expected lower interest margins, provide the Company with greater financial and other covenant flexibility and extend the maturity dates of RCPC's existing bank credit agreement. RCPC expects to use the proceeds of the 2006 Credit Facilities to repay in full the around US$800 million of outstanding indebtedness (plus accrued interest and a prepayment fee) under its existing term loan facility. The balance of such proceeds is expected to be available for general corporate purposes, after paying fees and expenses incurred in connection with consummating the 2006 Credit Facilities. RCPC expects to close and fund the 2006 Credit Facilities in late December 2006. Consummation of the 2006 Credit Facilities transactions is subject to a number of customary conditions, including, among other things, the execution of definitive documentation, perfection of security interests in collateral and that Revlon launch a rights offering for at least US$100 million in equity securities. Citicorp Global Markets Inc. has agreed to act as Sole Lead Arranger and Sole Bookrunner, with Citicorp USA, Inc. acting as Administrative Agent on the 2006 Term Loan Facility and 2006 Revolving Credit Facility. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. has agreed to act as Syndication Agent on the 2006 Term Loan Facility. Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The Company's brands include Revlon(R), Almay(R), Vital Radiance(R), Ultima(R), Charlie(R), Flex(R), and Mitchum(R). Headquartered in New York, Revlon Consumer Products Corp. is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- which in turn is majority-owned by MacAndrews and Forbes, which is wholly owned by Ronald O. Perelman. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 2, Moody's Investors Service lowered Revlon Consumer Products Corporation's long-term ratings, including the corporate family rating to Caa1 from B3. Moody's affirmed the company's speculative grade liquidity rating of SGL-4. Moody's said the outlook remains negative. As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter on Sept. 27, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered all of its ratings on New York City-based Revlon Consumer Products Corp., including its corporate credit rating, to 'CCC+' from 'B-'. S&P said the outlook is negative. REVLON CONSUMER: S&P Junks US$840-Mln Senior Secured Term Loan -------------------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its loan and recovery ratings to New York, N.Y.-based Revlon Consumer Products Corp.'s new US$840-million senior secured term loan due 2012. The loan rating is 'CCC+', with a recovery rating of '2', indicating the expectation for substantial (80%-100%) recovery of principal in the event of a payment default. At the same time, Standard & Poor's affirmed its existing ratings on Revlon, including the 'CCC+' corporate credit rating. The rating outlook is negative. In addition to the proposed term loan facility, Revlon also announced that it intends to increase the size of its previously planned US$75 million rights offering to US$100 million. McAndrews & Forbes is committed to purchasing its 60% pro rata share of the equity covered by the offering. M&F will also backstop up to US$75 million of the offering, and will continue to provide an additional US$50 million line of credit through January 2008. The bank refinancing will close in December 2006, and the rights offering will be completed in January 2007. Proceeds from the new term loan facility will be used to refinance Revlon's existing US$800 million term loan facility, and the balance will be available for general corporate purposes after the repayment of transaction related fees and expenses. Proceeds from the rights offering will be used to repay US$50 million of its 8.625% subordinated notes (rated 'CCC-') due in 2008, with the remainder used to pay down its existing revolver balance after fees and expenses (the US$160 million maximum revolver commitment remains unchanged). At Sept. 30, 2006, the company had about US$1.465 billion in total debt outstanding and, on a pro forma basis, will have about US$1.404 billion of total debt outstanding at the closing of the bank refinancing and rights offering. REVLON INC: To Launch US$100-Million Additional Share Issue ----------------------------------------------------------- Revlon Inc. intends to launch, in December 2006, a US$100 million rights offering that would allow stockholders to purchase additional shares of Revlon Class A common stock. Revlon plans to use the proceeds of such equity issuance to reduce debt. Pursuant to the rights offering, Revlon would distribute at no charge to each stockholder of record of its Class A and Class B common stock, as of the close of business on Dec. 11, 2006, the record date set by Revlon's Board of Directors, transferable subscription rights that would enable such stockholders to purchase shares of Class A common stock at a subscription price to be determined by a committee of Revlon's Board of Directors composed solely of independent directors within the meaning of Section 303A.02 of the NYSE Listed Company Manual and the Board's Guidelines for Assessing Director Independence, and based on market conditions at the time of the rights offering. Pursuant to an over-subscription privilege in the rights offering, each rights holder that exercises its basic subscription privilege in full may also subscribe for additional shares at the same subscription price per share, to the extent that other stockholders do not exercise their subscription rights in full. If an insufficient number of shares is available to fully satisfy the over-subscription privilege requests, the available shares will be sold pro-rata among subscription rights holders who exercised their over- subscription privilege, based on the number of shares each subscription rights holder subscribed for under the basic subscription privilege. MacAndrews & Forbes, Revlon's parent company, which is wholly owned by Ronald O. Perelman, has agreed to purchase its pro rata share of the US$100 million of Class A common stock covered by the rights offering, which share M&F would otherwise have been entitled to subscribe for in the rights offering pursuant to its basic subscription right. Additionally, pursuant to its existing backstop obligation, if any shares remain following the exercise of the basic subscription privilege and the over- subscription privilege by other rights holders, MacAndrews & Forbes will backstop US$75 million of the rights offering by purchasing such number of remaining shares of Class A common stock offered but not purchased by other stockholders as would be sufficient for the aggregate gross proceeds of the rights offering to total US$75 million. Although MacAndrews & Forbes would otherwise be entitled to an over-subscription right, it has agreed not to exercise its over-subscription right, which will maximize the shares available for purchase by other stockholders pursuant to their over-subscription rights. The rights offering of around US$100 million would be conducted via an existing effective shelf registration statement. Around US$50 million of the proceeds from the rights offering are expected to be used to redeem around US$50 million principal amount of the 8 5/8% Senior Subordinated Notes due 2008 of Revlon Consumer Products Corp., Revlon's wholly owned operating subsidiary, with the remainder of such proceeds to be used to repay indebtedness outstanding under RCPC's US$160 million multi-currency revolving credit facility, without any permanent reduction in that commitment, after paying fees and expenses incurred in connection with the proposed rights offering. Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The Company's brands include Revlon(R), Almay(R), Vital Radiance(R), Ultima(R), Charlie(R), Flex(R), and Mitchum(R). Headquartered in New York, Revlon Consumer Products Corp. is a worldwide cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care products company. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Revlon Inc. -- http://www.revloninc.com/-- which in turn is majority-owned by MacAndrews and Forbes, which is wholly owned by Ronald O. Perelman. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Oct. 2, Moody's Investors Service lowered Revlon Consumer Products Corporation's long-term ratings, including the corporate family rating to Caa1 from B3. Moody's affirmed the company's speculative grade liquidity rating of SGL-4. Moody's said the outlook remains negative. As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter on Sept. 27, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered all of its ratings on New York City-based Revlon Consumer Products Corp., including its corporate credit rating, to 'CCC+' from 'B-'. S&P said the outlook is negative. SANDWELL 1: Fitch Affirms BB Rating on GBP5-Mln Class E Notes ------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings affirmed Sandwell Commercial Finance No. 1 Plc's commercial mortgage-backed floating-rate notes due 2039: -- GBP152.7 million Class A (XS0191369221) at AAA; -- GBP17.5 million Class B (XS0191371391) at AA; -- GBP12.5 million Class C (XS0191372522) at A; -- GBP10 million Class D (XS0191373686) at BBB; and -- GBP5 million Class E (XS0191373926) at BB. The affirmation follows a satisfactory performance review. Since closing in May 2004 and despite numerous substitutions taking place within the property portfolio, the transaction has been fairly stable. Sandwell 1 is a securitization of commercial mortgage loans originated in the U.K. by the West Bromwich Building Society. The initial pool consisted of 176 commercial mortgage loans with a provisional principal balance of GBP299.6 million. The interest coverage ratio has decreased slightly to 1.8x from 1.83x at closing. The debt service coverage ratio has improved slightly to 1.36x from 1.34x at closing. The loan-to-value ratio has also improved slightly, decreasing to 72.2% from 73.7% at closing. This transaction has been characterized by consistent changes to the pool from loan prepayments and loan substitutions. The annualized constant prepayment rate has now decreased to 12.7%, after a long period of being in the 21%-26% range and having reached 43.8% in October 2005. Since closing prepayments have amounted to GBP84 million, of which GBP27.8 million were prepaid since the previous performance review in December 2005. Total substitutions have amounted to GBP63.9 million, of which GBP13.2 million were added since the previous performance review. The portfolio now consists of 118 properties valued at GBP280.3 million. Following the prepayments credit enhancement levels have improved. The size of Class A notes outstanding has decreased to GBP152.7 million, with an increase in credit enhancement levels for Classes A, B, C, D and E to 24.7% (19.1%, at closing), 15.8% (12.1%), 9.5% (7.1%), 4.4% (3.1%) and 1.9% (1.1%). Credit enhancement for Class E is provided by a reserve fund, which is now fully funded to GBP3.75 million. The payment structure of the deal is sequential, but it may be switched to pro rata from August 2009 if certain parameters are met. The structure also benefits from a liquidity facility of GBP10.5 million and from a principal deficiency ledger. The liquidity facility reduces over time with the principal balance outstanding down to a minimum amount of GBP2.8 million. The principal deficiency ledger records losses allocated to individual Classes of notes and principal funds, which are allocated to cover shortfalls on the pre-enforcement revenue priority of payments. SANDWELL 2: Fitch Keeps BB Rating on GBP14-Million Class E Notes ---------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings affirmed Sandwell Commercial Finance No. 2 Plc's commercial mortgage-backed floating-rate notes due 2037: -- GBP243.2 million Class A (XS0229030126) at AAA; -- GBP18.9 million Class B (XS0229030472) at AA; -- GBP17.2 million Class C (XS0229030712) at A; -- GBP21.7 million Class D (XS0229031017) at BBB; and -- GBP14 million Class E (XS0229031280) at BB. The affirmation follows a satisfactory performance review. Since closing in September 2005 and despite numerous substitutions taking place within the property portfolio, the transaction has been fairly stable. Sandwell 2 is a securitization of commercial mortgage loans originated in the U.K. by the West Bromwich Building Society. The initial pool consisted of 187 commercial mortgage loans with a provisional principal balance of GBP364.1 million. The interest coverage ratio has increased to 1.4x from 1.31x at closing. The debt service coverage ratio has improved slightly to 1.19x from 1.13x at closing. The loan-to-value ratio has also improved slightly, decreasing to 76.9% from 78.3% at closing. This transaction has been characterized by consistent changes to the pool from loan prepayments and loan substitutions. The annualized constant prepayment rate for the latest quarter is 55.48%. Since closing prepayments have amounted to GBP113.3 million. Total substitutions have amounted to GBP75.8 million. The portfolio now consists of 196 properties valued at GBP417.8 million. Following the prepayments credit enhancement levels have improved. The size of Class A notes outstanding has decreased to GBP243.2 million, with an increase in credit enhancement levels for Classes A, B, C, D and E to 25%, 19%, 13.6%, 6.7% and 2.2%. Credit enhancement for Class E is provided by a reserve fund, which is now funded to GBP7 million. Despite interest rate hedging existing at the issuer level, there is no interest rate hedging at the borrower level. Accordingly there is a risk that if interest rates rise, individual borrowers with floating-rate loans may not have sufficient rental income to meet debt service payments. As 52% of the loan pool at closing pays a floating-rate of interest, this leaves the transaction substantially unhedged. The payment structure of the deal is sequential, but it may be switched to pro rata from September 2007 if certain parameters are met. The structure also benefits from a liquidity facility of GBP9.7 million and from a principal deficiency ledger. The liquidity facility reduces over time with the principal balance outstanding down to a minimum amount of GBP2.8 million. The principal deficiency ledger records losses allocated to individual Classes of notes and principal funds, which are allocated to cover shortfalls on the pre-enforcement revenue priority of payments. SCOTTISH RE: Completes Buyback of US$115 Million Senior Notes ------------------------------------------------------------- Scottish Re Group Limited has repurchased nearly all of the US$115-million 4.5% Senior Convertible Notes issued by Scottish Re, which note holders had the right to put to the Company. Scottish Re has begun the process of calling the remaining US$8,000 in Senior Convertible Notes that were not put in order to retire the full issue. About Scottish Re Scottish Re Group Limited -- http://www.scottishre.com/-- provides reinsurance of life insurance, annuities and annuity- type products through its operating companies in Bermuda, Charlotte, North Carolina, Dublin, Ireland, Grand Cayman, and Windsor, England. At March 31, 2006, the reinsurer's balance sheet showed US$12.2 billion assets and US$10.8 billion in liabilities * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Nov. 29, Moody's Investors Service continues to review the ratings of Scottish Re Group Ltd. with direction uncertain following the announcement by the company that it has entered into an agreement to sell a majority stake to MassMutual Capital Partners LLC, a member of the MassMutual Financial Group and Cerberus Capital Management, L.P., a private investment firm. These ratings continue on review with direction uncertain: * Scottish Re Group Limited: -- senior unsecured debt of Ba3; -- senior unsecured shelf of (P)Ba3; -- subordinate shelf of (P)B1; -- junior subordinate shelf of (P)B1; -- preferred stock of B2; and -- preferred stock shelf of (P)B2. * Scottish Holdings Statutory Trust II: preferred stock shelf of (P)B1; * Scottish Holdings Statutory Trust III: preferred stock shelf of (P)B1; * Scottish Annuity & Life Insurance Co (Cayman) Ltd.: insurance financial strength of Baa3; * Premium Asset Trust Series 2004-4: senior secured debt of Baa3 (based on IFS of SALIC); * Scottish Re (U.S.), Inc.: insurance financial strength of Baa3; * Stingray Pass-Through Certificates: senior secured debt of Baa3 (based on IFS rating of SALIC). At the same time, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services revised the CreditWatch status of its ratings on Scottish Re Group Ltd., Scottish Re's operating companies, and dependent unwrapped securitized deals to positive from negative. The ratings on securitizations that are wrapped or independent of the credit quality of Scottish Re have been affirmed. Scottish Re has a 'CCC' counterparty credit rating, and Scottish Re's operating companies have 'B+' counterparty credit and financial strength ratings. These ratings were placed on CreditWatch negative on July 31, 2006, when Scottish Re announced poor second-quarter results and that liquidity was tight. Fitch Ratings added that Scottish Re Group Ltd.'s ratings remain on Rating Watch Negative following the announcement that SCT has entered into an agreement which will result in a new equity investment into the company of US$600 million. SCT's ratings were placed on Rating Watch Negative on July 31, due to concerns regarding the company's ability to repay US$115 million of senior convertible notes that are expected to be put to the company on Dec. 6. The ratings remain on Rating Watch Negative: Scottish Annuity & Life Insurance Company (Cayman) Limited -- IFS at BBB. Scottish Re (U.S.) Inc. -- IFS at BBB. Scottish Re Limited -- IFS at BBB. Scottish Re Group Limited -- IDR at BB; -- 4.5% US$115 million senior convertible notes at BB-; -- 5.875% US$142 million hybrid capital units at B+; and -- 7.25% US$125 million non-cumulative perpetual preferred stock at B+. A.M. Best Co. has downgraded the Financial Strength Rating to B from B+ and the issuer credit ratings to "bb+" from "bbb-" of the primary operating insurance subsidiaries of Scottish Re Group Limited. A.M. Best has also downgraded the ICR of Scottish Re to "b" from "bb-" and all of Scottish Re's debt ratings. All ratings remain under review with negative implications. The FSR has been downgraded to B from B+ and the ICRs have been downgraded to "bb+" from "bbb-" and remain under review with negative implications for the following subsidiaries of Scottish Re Group Limited: -- Scottish Annuity & Life Insurance Company (Cayman) Ltd.; -- Scottish Re (U.S.), Inc.; -- Scottish Re Life Corporation; -- Scottish Re Limited; and -- Orkney Re, Inc. The ICR has been downgraded to "b" from "bb-" and remains under review with negative implications for Scottish Re Group Limited. These debt ratings have been downgraded and remain under review with negative implications: Scottish Re Group Limited -- to "b" from "bb-" on US$115 million 4.5% senior unsecured convertible notes, due 2022; -- to "ccc+" from "b" on US$143 million 5.875% of hybrid capital units, due 2007; and -- to "ccc+" from "b" on US$125 million non-cumulative preferred shares. Stingray Pass-thru Trust -- to "bb" from "bbb-" on US$325 million senior unsecured pass-thru certificates, due 2012 These indicative ratings for debt securities under the shelf registration have been downgraded and remain under review with negative implications: Scottish Re Group Limited -- -- to "ccc+" from "b" on preferred stock; -- to "b-" from "b+" on subordinated debt; and -- to "b" from "bb-" on senior unsecured debt; Scottish Holdings Statutory Trust II and III -- to "b-" from "b+" on preferred securities SEVERSTAL OAO: Hikes Authorized Capital Following Share Issue ------------------------------------------------------------- Shareholders of OAO Severstal exercised their pre-emptive rights to acquire 91% of the company's additional share issue, AK&M says. The shareholders acquired a total of 76,916,692 of shares at RUR0.01 apiece. Unplaced shares amount to 8,083,308. Following the share issue, Severstal's authorized capital will increase from RUR9.31 million RUR10.157 million. About Severstal Headquartered in Cherepovets, Russia, OAO Severstal -- http://www.severstal.com/-- is the country's largest steel producer, with steel production of 17.1 million tons in 2005. The Company owns Severstal North America, the fifth largest integrated steel maker in the U.S. with 2005 production of 2.7 million tons, and Lucchini, Italy's second largest steel group with 2005 production of 3.5 million tons. Severstal is one of the world's lowest cost and most profitable steel producers, with 2005 EBITDA per ton of around EUR150 per ton. As of Dec. 31, 2005, Severstal had US$10.75 billion in total assets, US$3.66 billion in total liabilities and US$7.09 billion in total shareholders' equity. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on July 5, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services kept its 'B+' long-term corporate credit rating on Russian steelmaker OAO Severstal on CreditWatch with positive implications following the consolidation of the company's mining assets. The rating was placed on CreditWatch on May 26, following the announcement of a previously agreed merger between Severstal and Luxembourg-based steelmaker Arcelor S.A. This merger was cancelled on June 30. As reported in the TCR-Europe on June 28, Fitch Ratings maintained the Rating Watch Positive status for OAO Severstal's ratings of Issuer Default BB-, senior unsecured BB-, Short-term B and National Long-term A+. Severstal, which raised just over US$1 billion placing shares in London this month, plans to acquire more assets on the way to becoming the world's second-largest steel maker, its 41-year-old billionaire owner, Alexei Mordashov, has said. SKILL 2000: Nominates Joint Liquidators from Abbott Fielding ------------------------------------------------------------ Nedim Ailyan and Andrew Tate of Abbott Fielding were nominated Joint Liquidators of Skill 2000 Limited (formerly Millenium Software Limited) on Nov. 24 for the creditors' voluntary winding-up proceeding. The company can be reached at: Skill 2000 Limited 16 Essex Road Ealing London W3 9JA United Kingdom Tel: 020 8840 4446 TRAC PROPERTIES: Nominates Liquidator from Stones & Co. ------------------------------------------------------- Gary Stones of Stones & Co. was nominated Liquidator of Trac Properties (Wales) Limited on Nov. 28 for the creditors' voluntary winding-up proceeding. The company can be reached at: Trac Properties (Wales) Limited Pantybryn Heol Ddu Ammanford Dyfed SA182UG United Kingdom Tel: 01269 822 375 VENTURE COBURG: Creditors' Meeting Slated for December 15 --------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Venture Coburg Limited (Company Number 05005719) will meet at 10:00 a.m. on Dec. 15 at: BDO Stoy Hayward LLP 125 Colmore Row Birmingham B3 3SD United Kingdom Creditors who want to be represented at the meeting may appoint proxies. Proxy forms must be submitted together with written debt claims at noon on Dec. 14 at: C. K. Rayment Joint Administrator BDO Stoy Hayward LLP 125 Colmore Row, Birmingham B3 3SD United Kingdom Tel: 0121 200 4600 Fax: 0121 200 4650 E-mail: birmingham@bdo.co.uk BDO Stoy Hayward -- http://www.bdo.co.uk/-- focuses on business assurance (audit), corporate advisory, tax, and investment management services, specializing in such industries as charities, educational institutions, family businesses, financial services, leisure, and hospitality. The company is the U.K. arm of BDO International and has offices in more than 15 cities throughout the U.K. W.H. WILSON: Brings In Administrators from Kroll ------------------------------------------------ D. J. Whitehouse and P. F. Duffy of Kroll Ltd. were appointed joint administrators of W.H. Wilson (Ellesmere Port) Ltd. (Company Number 00833855) on Nov. 27. Kroll Limited -- http://www.krollworldwide.com/-- offers risk- consulting services worldwide. The firm is an operating unit of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc., the global professional services firm. Kroll's services include corporate advisory and restructuring, financial accounting, valuation and litigation, electronic evidence and data recovery, business intelligence and investigations, background screening, and security services. Wilson W H (Ellesmere Port) Ltd. can be reached at: Rosscliffe Road Ellesmere Port Merseyside CH65 3AT United Kingdom Tel: 015 1355 1931 Fax: 0151 356 2609 WINSFORD FABRICATIONS: Taps Administrators from Royce Peeling ------------------------------------------------------------- Peter Jones and R. M. Withinshaw of Royce Peeling Green Ltd. were appointed joint administrators of Winsford Fabrications Ltd. (Company Number 04417897) on Nov. 24. The administrators can be reached at: Peter Jones and R. M. Withinshaw Royce Peeling Green Ltd. The Copper Room Deva Centre Trinity Way Salford Lancashire M3 7BG United Kingdom Tel: 0161 608 0000 Fax: 0161 608 0001 Winsford Fabrications Ltd. can be reached at: Road Five Winsford Industrial Estate Winsford Cheshire CW7 3QX United Kingdom Tel: 079 8933 1254 Fax: 016 0659 7308 WOODEN HEART: Creditors Ratify Voluntary Liquidation ---------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Wooden Heart Of Yorkshire Limited ratified Nov. 24 the resolutions for voluntary liquidation and confirmed the appointment of Jonathan Lord of Bridgestones as Liquidator. Headquartered in Keighley, England, Wooden Heart of Yorkshire Limited -- http://www.woodenheartofyorkshire.co.uk/-- supplies make your own luxury wooden character cards, kits and other folk art inspired gifts. ZEROPLUS U.K.: Creditors Confirm Liquidators' Appointment --------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Zeroplus U.K. Limited confirmed Nov. 23 the appointment of Gordon Smythe Goldie and Allan David Kelly of Tait Walker as the company's Liquidators. The company can be reached at: Zeroplus U.K. Limited 29 Mosley Street Newcastle Upon Tyne Tyne And Wear NE1 1YF United Kingdom Tel: 0191 230 1345 Fax: 0191 261 2039 * BOOK REVIEW: A Treatise on the Right of Property in Tide Waters ---------------------------------------------------------------- Author: Joseph K. Angell Publisher: Beard Books Paperback: 440 pages List Price: US$34.95 Order your personal copy at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/158798105X/internetbankru pt Joseph Angell's A Treatise on the Right of Property in Tide Waters has been widely received as a leading authority on this topic both in the United States and in England. This was the first detailed work published in the United States concerning principles, which relate to the right of property in tide waters, i.e., those waters in which there is an ebbing and flowing of the tide. There is a broad scope of topics covering such areas as the development of common law doctrines, the right of fishery, delimitation, the right to seaweed, rights acquired by prescription and custom, statutes and usage, adjoining owner rights, and wrecked property thrown on the shore. ********* Each Tuesday edition of the TCR contains a list of companies with insolvent balance sheets whose shares trade higher than US$3 per share in public markets. At first glance, this list may look like the definitive compilation of stocks that are ideal to sell short. Don't be fooled. Assets, for example, reported at historical cost net of depreciation may understate the true value of a firm's assets. A company may establish reserves on its balance sheet for liabilities that may never materialize. The prices at which equity securities trade in public market are determined by more than a balance sheet solvency test. A list of Meetings, Conferences and Seminars appears in each Thursday's edition of the TCR. Submissions about insolvency- related conferences are encouraged. Send announcements to conferences@bankrupt.com/ Each Friday's edition of the TCR includes a review about a book of interest to troubled company professionals. All titles are available at your local bookstore or through Amazon.com. Go to http://www.bankrupt.com/books/to order any title today. ********* 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., Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Frederick, Maryland USA. Jazel Laureno, Julybien Atadero, Carmel Zamesa Paderog, Joy Agravante, and Zora Jayda Zerrudo Sala, Editors. Copyright 2006. 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 * * *