T R O U B L E D C O M P A N Y R E P O R T E R E U R O P E Thursday, February 14, 2008, Vol. 9, No. 32 Headlines A U S T R I A ALFRED PISTRACHER: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 ARRION LLC: Claims Registration Period Ends March 18 AUTOHAUS LUGER: Claims Registration Period Ends March 3 EOS TORE: Claims Registration Period Ends April 8 GAK MARKETING: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 GAK-STADION: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 HERMANN FEND: Claims Registration Period Ends February 25 PETER HANDEL: Claims Registration Period Ends March 27 XERIUM TECH: Appoints Three Officers to Executive Roles B E L G I U M FERRO CORP: Expects US$500-Mln Net Revenues in 2007 Fourth Qtr. SENSIENT TECH: Earns US$77.8 Million in Year Ended Dec. 31 F I N L A N D BRIGHTPOINT INC: To Deliver Google Services on Mobile Devices F R A N C E ARROW ELECTRONICS: Inks Pact to Acquire ACI Electronics Assets DELPHI CORP: Lenders Have Problems Syndicating US$6.1 Bln Loan G E R M A N Y DITTRICHBAU GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends March 7 ELP-MEDIEN: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 ERLEBNISGARTEN LUDWIGSHOEHE: Claims Registration Ends March 6 HANSE TREUHAND: Claims Registration Ends March 4 IKB DEUTSCHE: KfW May Sell Deutche Post Stake for Rescue Funds IPSER GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends February 25 J. JULIUS: Claims Registration Ends March 1 JEREBITZ GMBH: Claims Registration Ends March 4 JUERGEN WOLFF: Claims Registration Period Ends March 7 KLUTH LOGISTIC: Claims Registration Period Ends March 7 NUTHE BAU: Claims Registration Ends March 4 OBJEKTBAU HOESS: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 PI-GA GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 PLUS.TV: Claims Registration Period Ends February 28 POWER-MAN GMBH: Claims Registration Ends March 4 PROPEC GMBH: Claims Registration Ends March 4 SHOW IT NEUSS: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 WILHELM ROEGELS: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 WILZE GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends March 4 I R E L A N D VISAGE CDO I: Moody's Junks Three Deferrable Note Classes I T A L Y ALITALIA SPA: AirOne Woos Lombardy Investors to Join Bid ARTIGIANFIDI VARESE: Fitch Affirms IDR at BB with Stable Outlook BERRY PLASTICS: Loan Refinancing Cues Moody's to Junk Notes NEAFIDI - SOCIETA: Fitch Holds BB IDR on Operating Profitability UNIONFIDI PIEMONTE: Fitch Affirms BB+ IDR on Low Capitalization K A Z A K H S T A N DAULET-SERVICE LTD: Proof of Claim Deadline Slated for March 11 EKIBASTUZ ELECTRO: Creditors Must File Claims by March 11 LD & K: Claims Filing Period Ends March 7 MALAISARY LLP: Creditors' Claims Due on March 7 PARITET CORPUS: Claims Registration Ends March 7 PROM AGRO: Proof of Claim Deadline Slated for March 11 RIO ASTANA: Creditors Must File Claims by March 11 STROYOPTSERVICE-LTD: Claims Filing Period Ends March 11 TEPLOCOMMUNENERGO: Creditors Must File Claims by March 7 K Y R G Y Z S T A N AL-MIR LLC: Creditors Must File Claims by February 22 TAGAI LLC: Claims Filing Period Ends February 22 P O L A N D LEAR CORP: Forms Global Operating Structure; Names 2 Executives R U S S I A 106 SEL-KHOZ-VOD-STROY: Creditors Must File Claims by March 28 BIORANTA CJSC: Creditors Must File Claims by February 28 MECHETLINSKIY BUILDER: Creditors Must File Claims by March 28 POGRAN-AGRO-PROM-ENERGO: Creditors Must File Claims by March 28 RK NEPTUNE: Sakhalin Bankruptcy Hearing Slated for June 3 SIBERIAN GRAIN: Creditors Must File Claims by March 28 SISTEMA JSFC: Opens New Office in India STELLER COMPUTERS: Creditors Must File Claims by March 28 STROY-SVYAZ LLC: Creditors Must File Claims by February 28 TRUST 1 CJSC: Creditors Must File Claims by March 28 VYMPEL LLC: Creditors Must File Claims by March 28 S P A I N SOL MELIA: S&P Withdraws BB+ Ratings at Company's Request S W I T Z E R L A N D BASILEIA MUSICAL: Creditors' Liquidation Claims Due by Feb. 21 BRANDWIZARD JSC: Creditors' Liquidation Claims Due by Feb. 20 C-DUE JSC: Creditors' Liquidation Claims Due by Feb. 21 C-TRE LLC: Creditors' Liquidation Claims Due by Feb. 21 J & S TRANSPORT: Basel Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings NATIONALE GESELLSCHAFT: Creditors Must File Claims by Feb. 20 NITREX JSC: Creditors' Liquidation Claims Due by Feb. 20 ZANGGER BACKEREI: Basel Court Starts Bankruptcy Proceedings U K R A I N E AGRICULTURAL BUILDING: Creditors Must File Claims by February 23 BANK FORUM: Fitch Rates IDR at B on Vulnerable Liquidity COMPACT-UKRAINE COMPANY: Creditors Must File Claims by Feb. 23 DWELLING BUILDING-6: Creditors Must File Claims by February 23 NIKOPOL SPINNING-THREAD: Creditors Must File Claims by Feb. 23 SPECIAL SERVICE: Proofs of Claim Deadline Set February 23 TOKMAK MACHINE-TRACTOR: Proofs of Claim Deadline Set February 23 U N I T E D K I N G D O M ARAMARK CORP: Improved Credit Prompts S&P to Affirm B+ Rating BRITISH ENERGY: Earns GBP383 Mln in Nine Months Ended Dec. 30 CAMBRIDGE CAPACITORS: Taps Administrators from Ernst & Young CHATTEM INC: Recalls Icy Hot Seat Products After Burn Reports FORD MOTOR: Plans to Offer Buyout Packages to 9,000 Workers FORD MOTOR: Awards Hot-End Emission Control Business to Tenneco GENERAL MOTORS: May Have to Fund Delphi's Exit, Investors Say GENERAL MOTORS: Posts Net Loss of US$38.7 Billion in 2007 GENERAL MOTORS: Reaches Agreement with UAW on Attrition Program HEALEY CONSTRUCTION: Claims Filing Period Ends April 14 INTERMEC INC: Earns US$16.4 Million in Fourth Quarter 2007 INVENSYS PLC: Posts Net Cash of GBP55 Mln for Third Quarter 2007 KRONOS INC: Inks Human Resource Services Pact With Winn-Dixie LEISURE DIRECTION: Brings In Administrators from Menzies M J SHERMAN: Brings In Liquidators from Vantis NORTHERN ROCK: Virgin Gets Ahead of Bidding Race, Treasury Says NUANCE COMM: Incurs US$15.4 Million Net Loss in First Quarter POWERPIKE LTD: Appoints Ernst & Young as Administrators REFCO INC: Court Moves Claim Objection Deadline to April 30 REFCO INC: Consummates Sale of 35% Equity Stake in FXCM REFCO INC: SPhinX Liquidators Want Protective Order Eased REPLICA ORIGINATION: Claims Filing Period Ends June 30 SLIPCATCH LTD: Brings In Administrators from Moore Stephens SPARTAN EUROPE: Appoints Begbies Traynor to Administer Assets SPECIALIST HEATING: Names Administrators from KPMG TENNECO INC: Bags Ford Motor's Hot-End Emission Control Business UK INTERMARK: Names Alistair Steven Wood Liquidator W.F. HILL: Calls In Liquidators from Tenon Recovery WHISTLEJACKET CAPITAL: NAV Breach Triggers Receivership WHISTLEJACKET CAPITAL: Moody's Cuts Rating on Senior Debt to Ba2 WHISTLEJACKET CAPITAL: S&P Junks Notes on NAV Test Failure WORK 4: Joint Liquidators Take Over Operations * Upcoming Meetings, Conferences and Seminars ********* ============= A U S T R I A ============= ALFRED PISTRACHER: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 ---------------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC Alfred Pistracher (FN 160434h) have until March 5, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court- appointed estate administrator Gerald Streibel at: Mag. Gerald Streibel LLC TPA Insolvenztreuhand Schwedengasse 2 3500 Krems an der Donau Austria Tel: 02732/70280-80 Fax: 02732/70280-9 E-mail: insolvenz.krems@tpawt.com Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 8:30 a.m. on March 19, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Land Court of Krems an der Donau Hall A Second Floor Krems an der Donau Austria Headquartered in Gfoehl, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008 (Bankr. Case No. 9 S 4/08y). ARRION LLC: Claims Registration Period Ends March 18 ---------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC Arrion (FN 271407d) have until March 18, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court- appointed estate administrator Eberhard Wallentin at: Dr. Eberhard Wallentin Porzellangasse 4-6 1090 Vienna Austria Tel: 313 74-0 Fax: 313 74-80 E-mail: office@ksw.at Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 10:00 a.m. on April 1, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Trade Court of Vienna Room 1606 Vienna Austria Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008, (Bankr. Case No. 4 S 10/08k). AUTOHAUS LUGER: Claims Registration Period Ends March 3 ------------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC AUTOHAUS LUGER (FN 179193w) have until March 3, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court- appointed estate administrator Robert Levovnik at: Mag. Robert Levovnik Getreidegasse 13/I 9020 Klagenfurt Austria Tel: 0463/50 43 43 Fax: 0463/50 45 82 E-mail: levovnik@aon.at Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 9:15 a.m. on March 11, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Land Court of Klagenfurt Meeting Room 225 Second Floor Klagenfurt Austria Headquartered in Klagenfurt, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008 (Bankr. Case No. 40 S 5/08p). EOS TORE: Claims Registration Period Ends April 8 ------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC EOS Tore Produktion (FN 207317d) have until April 8, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court-appointed estate administrator Georg Rupprecht at: Mag. Georg Rupprecht c/o Dr. Michael Troethandl Hauptplatz 9-13 2500 Baden Austria Tel: 02252/86 580 Fax: 02252/865803 E-Mail: rupprecht@lexacta.com Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 9:00 a.m. on April 22, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Land Court of Wiener Neustadt Room 15 Wiener Neustadt Austria Headquartered in Guntramsdorf, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008 (Bankr. Case No. 11 S 12/08p). Michael Troethandl represents Mag. Rupprecht in the bankruptcy proceedings. GAK MARKETING: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 ------------------------------------------------------ Creditors owed money by LLC GAK Marketing (FN 226550m) have until March 5, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court- appointed estate administrator Norbert Scherbaum at: Dr. Norbert Scherbaum Advocacy LLC Scherbaum/Seebacher Rechtsanwalte Einspinnergasse 3/II 8010 Graz Austria Tel: 0316/832460 Fax: 0316/832460-20 E-mail: office@scherbaum-seebacher.at Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 10:30 a.m. on March 13, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Land Court of Graz Room 222 Second Floor Graz Austria Headquartered in Graz, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008 (Bankr. Case No. 26 S 12/08x). GAK-STADION: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 ---------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC GAK-Stadion (FN 49592f) have until March 5, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court- appointed estate administrator Norbert Scherbaum at: Dr. Norbert Scherbaum LLC Scherbaum/Seebacher Rechtsanwalte Einspinnergasse 3/II 8010 Graz Austria Tel: 0316/832460 Fax: 0316/832460-20 E-mail: office@scherbaum-seebacher.at Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 10:40 a.m. on March 13, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Land Court of Graz Room 222 Second Floor Graz Austria Headquartered in Graz, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008 (Bankr. Case No. 26 S 13/08v). HERMANN FEND: Claims Registration Period Ends February 25 --------------------------------------------------------- Creditors owed money by LLC Hermann Fend & Co KG (FN 11586p) have until Feb. 25, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court-appointed estate administrator Michael Kaufmann at: Dr. Michael Kaufmann c/o Mag. Lukas Pfefferkorn Schulgasse 7 6850 Dornbirn Austria Tel: 05572/20210 Fax: 05572/34414 E-mail: office@ktg.at Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 10:10 a.m. on March 6, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Land Court of Feldkirch Meeting Room 45 First Floor Feldkirch Austria Headquartered in Altach, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008 (Bankr. Case No. 13 S 8/08v). Lukas Pfefferkorn represents Dr. Kaufmann in the bankruptcy proceedings. PETER HANDEL: Claims Registration Period Ends March 27 ------------------------------------------------------ Creditors owed money by LLC Peter Handel (FN 285462y) have until March 27, 2008, to file written proofs of claim to court- appointed estate administrator Wolfgang Winkler at: Mag. Wolfgang Winkler c/o Dr. Maximilian Schludermann Reisnerstrasse 32/12 1030 Vienna Austria Tel: 715 50 45 Fax: 715 50 47 4 E-mail: office@anwalt-viennat.at Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the creditors' meeting at 10:15 a.m. on April 10, 2008, for the examination of claims. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The Trade Court of Vienna Room 1701 Vienna Austria Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, the Debtor declared bankruptcy on Jan. 25, 2008 (Bankr. Case No. 6 S 10/08z). Maximilian Schludermann represents Mag. Winkler in the bankruptcy proceedings. XERIUM TECH: Appoints Three Officers to Executive Roles ------------------------------------------------------- Xerium Technologies Inc. has appointed David Pretty as President - Xerium North America, Peter Williamson as President - Xerium Europe and Joan "John" Badrinas Ardevol as Chief Technology Officer. Mr. Pretty has served as President - Weavexx, the company's North American clothing operation, since December 2005, and prior to that held various sales, marketing and technical service positions with the company and its predecessors since 1987. As President - Xerium North America, he assumes responsibility for the Company's North American roll covers operations, in addition to the clothing operations in that region. Mr. Williamson has served as the company's Managing Director - Stowe Woodward Europe, with responsibility for Xerium's European roll covers business since joining the company in March 2006. Mr. Williamson had previously served as President of the product area engine group at Trelleborg AB and earlier as President - Metzler Automotive Hose Systems. As President - Xerium Europe, he will be responsible for the Company's European clothing operations, in addition to the roll covers operations in Europe. John Badrinas, who had been the company's President - Clothing Europe since joining Xerium in July 2006, will now be responsible for the company's research and development activities in the new role of Chief Technology Officer. Prior to joining Xerium, Mr. Badrinas held various technology leadership positions at Trelleborg AB and Pendelastica SA. Doug Milner, who had been President - Stowe Woodward Rolls Worldwide since joining the company in February 2004, has left Xerium to pursue other opportunities. The company expresses its thanks to Doug Milner for his service to Xerium over the last four years. Headquartered in Wesborough, Massachusetts, Xerium Technologies, Inc. -- http://xerium.com/-- manufactures and supplies two types of products used primarily in the production of paper: clothing and roll covers. The company operates under a variety of brand names and owns a broad portfolio of patented and proprietary technologies to provide customers with tailored solutions and products, designed to optimize performance and reduce operational costs. With 35 manufacturing facilities in 15 countries, including Austria, Brazil and Japan, Xerium Technologies has approximately 3,900 employees. * * * To date, Xerium Technologies Inc. carries Moody's Investors Service ratings on corporate family rating at B2; bank loan debt and probability of default at B2 rating. The outlook is stable. ============= B E L G I U M ============= FERRO CORP: Expects US$500-Mln Net Revenues in 2007 Fourth Qtr. --------------------------------------------------------------- Ferro Corporation has revised its 2007 fourth quarter earnings estimates and a likely non-cash charge for goodwill impairment. Revised 2007 Fourth Quarter Estimates Ferro announced that earnings per share for the 2007 fourth quarter are now expected to be approximately 3 cents below the low end of analysts' current earnings estimates. As reported by Thomson First Call, analysts expect earnings between 15 and 23 cents per share, excluding special charges. The company's lower earnings expectations are primarily a result of a manufacturing interruption in December at its Bridgeport, New Jersey, organic chemical manufacturing plant and increased raw material costs across the company's businesses. The company expected net sales for the fourth quarter to be approximately US$570 million, exceeding its previous estimates, primarily due to surcharges and other product pricing actions and favorable changes in foreign exchange rates. Manufacturing operations were interrupted at the Bridgeport site in mid-December when an excess quantity of product was accidentally discharged into the plant's on-site wastewater treatment facility. As a result, the company incurred costs from scrapped product and additional wastewater treatment resulting in pre-tax charges of approximately US$2 million in the 2007 fourth quarter, or approximately 3 cents per diluted share. Also during the fourth quarter, Ferro continued to experience rising raw material costs, including sharply rising costs for cobalt and chrome oxide used in the company's Inorganic Specialties business. Since September, market prices for cobalt have increased over 50 percent and chrome oxide has increased over 35 percent. Through changes in product pricing the company was largely able to cover the actual raw material cost increases, however the company was unable to increase prices sufficiently to maintain gross margins. In addition, the higher product prices resulting from increasing raw materials costs has caused some customers to reduce purchases or choose other lower cost materials. "While I am disappointed with the fourth quarter results, we remain focused on continuing to improve the profitability of the Company," said Ferro Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer James F. Kirsch. "Despite the difficult 2007 U.S. markets in housing, automobiles and appliances, we generated net cash from operating activities and reduced debt." Looking forward, Mr. Kirsch noted, "We are on track with the restructuring programs we have initiated over the past 18 months, and we remain committed to delivering our goal of ten percent operating margins as we enter 2010. We will accomplish this through organic growth of higher-value products such as our conductive metal pastes for solar applications, coupled with incremental savings generated from our ongoing restructuring programs, aggressive pursuit of manufacturing productivity improvements, improved pricing for value, and expense reductions." Ferro will provide details of the 2007 fourth quarter and full year financial results in a press release and conference call on Friday, Feb. 29. Detailed instructions for accessing the conference call will be announced shortly. Goodwill Impairment Evaluation Ferro annually assesses existing goodwill for impairment, as required by Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (SFAS) No. 142. The assessment consists of two tests. In the first step, Ferro tests goodwill for impairment by comparing the fair value of the businesses associated with the goodwill against the book value. If the net book value of a business exceeds its fair value, the Company must perform a second step to measure potential impairment. Ferro has completed the first step of its annual goodwill assessment which indicated that the book value of the polymer additives and pharmaceutical businesses exceeds their fair values. Consequently, Ferro is now performing step two of the goodwill impairment assessment. The anticipated impairment in the polymer additives business is triggered by the cumulative negative effect on earnings of a cyclical downturn in certain of the business' primary U.S.-based end markets, including housing and automobiles; anticipated additional product costs due to recent hazardous material legislation and regulations, such as the newly enacted European Union "REACH" registration system that requires chemical suppliers to perform toxicity studies of the components of their products and to register certain information; and higher forecasted capital expenditures related to the business. The anticipated impairment of goodwill in Ferro's pharmaceutical business is primarily the result of a longer time to transition the business from a supplier of food supplements and additives to a supplier of high-value pharmaceutical products and services. While Ferro has not concluded its accounting analysis, the Company now anticipates that it is likely that a material, pre- tax, non-cash impairment charge will be recorded that may represent a substantial portion, and potentially all, of the approximately US$114 million of goodwill recorded on its balance sheet for the polymer additives and pharmaceutical businesses. The company had goodwill of US$74 million associated with the polymer additives business and $40 million associated with the pharmaceutical business recorded as of Dec. 31, 2006. As required, the company will also be assessing the value of other long-term assets in these businesses. All impairment charges deemed necessary as a result of the current evaluations will be included in Ferro's fourth quarter 2007 financial results. The charge will not impact Ferro's cash balance or future cash flows, or result in a violation of any covenant of any of Ferro's debt instruments. Additionally, the charge will not affect the payment of the 14.5 cents per share dividend on Ferro's common stock that was previously approved by the company's board of directors. The dividend is payable on March 10 for shareholders of record on Feb. 15. About Ferro Corp. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Ferro Corporation (NYSE: FOE) -- http://www.ferro.com/-- is a global producer of an array of specialty chemicals including coatings, enamels, pigments, plastic compounds, and specialty chemicals for use in industries ranging from construction, pharmaceuticals and telecommunications. Ferro operates through the following five primary business segments: Performance Coatings, Electronic Materials, Color and Performance Glass Materials, Polymer Additives, and Specialty Plastics. Revenues were US$2 billion for the FYE ended Dec. 31, 2006. Ferro Corp. has global locations in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, China, among others. * * * In May 2007, Moody's Investors Service assigned a B1 corporate family rating to Ferro Corporation. Moody's also assigned a B1 rating to the company's US$200 million senior secured notes (issued as unsecured notes in 2001) due in January 2009 and an SGL-3 speculative grade liquidity rating. SENSIENT TECH: Earns US$77.8 Million in Year Ended Dec. 31 ---------------------------------------------------------- Sensient Technologies Corporation reported US$18.2 million of net income for the three months ended Dec. 31, 2007, compared to net income of US$15.3 million for the same period in 2006. For the full year of 2007, the company earned US$77.8 million compared to net income of US$66.4 million in 2006. Revenue reached a record level of US$300.9 million for the fourth quarter, up 10.3% from the comparable period in 2006. Revenue for the twelve months ended Dec. 31, 2007, was US$1.2 billion, an increase of 7.8% over the prior year. Foreign currency translation had a favorable impact on revenue of 5% and 4%, respectively, for the fourth quarter and year. Cash provided by operating activities increased 33.7% in the fourth quarter to US$24.5 million, compared to US$18.4 million in the prior year's comparable period. For the year, cash provided by operating activities was US$105.2 million, an increase of 6.0% in comparison to US$99.2 million in the prior year. "This quarter marks our eighth consecutive quarter of strong earnings growth," said Kenneth P. Manning, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sensient Technologies Corporation. "We had an outstanding year. Each of our operating groups contributed to the excellent results, and we expect our businesses to perform well in 2008." Business Review The Flavors & Fragrances Group reported record fourth quarter revenue and operating income. Revenue for the quarter increased 7.7% to US$199.4 million, compared to US$185.0 million in last year's comparable period. Fourth quarter operating income was up 11.3% to US$30.1 million, compared to US$27.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2006. Revenue for the twelve months ended Dec. 31, 2007, increased 6.9% to US$783.7 million, and operating income was up 12.3% to US$117.3 million. Group revenue for the quarter and twelve month period benefited from favorable foreign currency translation and from improved pricing and higher volumes. Operating income for both periods rose on the higher sales. Group operating margins in 2007 improved 80 basis points to 15.0%. The Color Group's fourth quarter revenue increased 14.7% to US$95.6 million, compared to US$83.4 million in last year's comparable period. Operating income for the quarter was up 20.3% to US$16.6 million, compared to US$13.8 million reported in the fourth quarter of 2006. Revenue for the twelve months ended Dec. 31, 2007, increased 7.9% to US$377.9 million and operating income was up 12.7% to US$67.0 million. Color Group revenue for the quarter and year reflects favorable foreign currency translation and solid volume growth in food and beverage colors. Volume growth in cosmetic colors was also strong. Group operating margins in 2007 improved 70 basis points to 17.7%. About Sensient Technologies Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Sensient Technologies Corp. -- http://www.sensient-tech.com/-- manufactures and markets colors, flavors and fragrances. Sensient also employs technologies to develop specialty chemicals for inkjet inks, display imaging systems and other applications. The company's principal products include flavors, flavor enhancers and bionutrients; fragrances and aroma chemicals; dehydrated vegetables and other food ingredients; natural and synthetic food colors; cosmetic and pharmaceutical additives; inkjet inks, technical colors, and specialty dyes and pigments, and chemicals for laser printing and flat screen displays. In Europe, Sensient maintains operations facilities and/or sales offices in Belgium, Bosnia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Estonia, United Kingdom, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Turkey, Ukraine, and Wales. In Latin America, it has operations in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. * * * In July 2007, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has revised its outlook on Milwaukee, Wis.-based Sensient Technologies Corp. to stable from negative. At the same time, Standard & Poor's affirmed its 'BB+' corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on the company. Approximately USUS$508 million of debt was outstanding as of June 30, 2007. ============= F I N L A N D ============= BRIGHTPOINT INC: To Deliver Google Services on Mobile Devices ------------------------------------------------------------- Brightpoint Inc. has entered into a distribution agreement with Google Inc. to distribute Google(tm) services. Pursuant to the agreement, Brightpoint will pre-install a wide range of smartphones, including those running on Windows Mobile, Blackberry, Palm, Symbian, and other OS-powered device, with Google Search and Google Maps(tm) for mobile. These applications will be distributed through Brightpoint's 25,000 B2B customers around the world. "We're excited to work with Google to bring more services to our customers. I believe Google's innovative mobile applications and services will further accelerate the replacement cycle and create a 'pull' demand in the global wireless marketplace. Through our leadership position in the global wireless distribution and customized logistic services value chain, we offer a compelling value proposition to all OS-powered device manufacturers. I believe that this new relationship with Google is a testament to Brightpoint's ability to provide strategic value to the increasing penetration of converged devices on a global basis," stated Robert J. Laikin, Brightpoint's Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board. About Brightpoint Headquartered in Plainfield, Indiana, Brightpoint, Inc. -- http://www.brightpoint.com/ -- distributes wireless devices and accessories, as well as provision of customized logistic services to the wireless industry. The company primarily operates in Australia, Colombia, Finland, Germany, India, New Zealand, Norway, the Philippines, the Slovak Republic, Sweden, United Arab Emirates and the United States. The company's customers include mobile operators, mobile virtual network operators, resellers, retailers and wireless equipment manufacturers. Brightpoint was incorporated in 1989 under the name Wholesale Cellular USA, Inc. and changed its name to Brightpoint Inc. in 1995. * * * Brightpoint, Inc., continues to carry Standard and Poor's BB- long-term local and foreign issuer credit ratings with a stable outlook. These ratings were assigned on April 2006. =========== F R A N C E =========== ARROW ELECTRONICS: Inks Pact to Acquire ACI Electronics Assets -------------------------------------------------------------- Arrow Electronics Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire all of the assets and operations of ACI Electronics LLC. ACI is one of the largest independent distributors of electronic components used in defense and aerospace applications. "With the acquisition of ACI, we continue to execute on our strategic priority to pursue opportunities in the more rapidly growing areas of the market. In the last five years, ACI has grown sales organically at a compound annual growth rate of approximately 20 percent. ACI will further bolster our number one position in the North American defense and aerospace marketplace, and when combined with our existing Arrow/Zeus business, we will have leading market share in many technology segments including military discretes. This strategic transaction will add to the breadth of our customer base and increase our staff of highly experienced sales professionals, while strengthening our relationships with key suppliers," said Michael J. Long, president of Arrow Global Components. ACI is headquartered in Denver, Colorado and distributes products in the United States, Israel, Spain and Italy. With approximately 60 employees, ACI provides value-added distribution services to over 2,000 customers who manufacture military and commercial aircraft systems, and other military applications. ACI is recognized by its customers as the distributor of choice for its product knowledge, value-added services, superior customer service, and strong supplier relationships. Many of ACI's customers and suppliers have been with the company for more than 20 years. Total sales in 2007 were approximately US$60 million and the acquisition will be immediately accretive to earnings by US$0.03 to US$0.04 in 2008. About Arrow Electronics Headquartered in Melville, New York, Arrow Electronics Inc. -- http://www.arrow.com/-- provides products, services and solutions to industrial and commercial users of electronic components and computer products. Arrow serves as a supply channel partner for nearly 600 suppliers and more than 130,000 original equipment manufacturers, contract manufacturers and commercial customers through a global network of over 270 locations in 53 countries and territories. The company operates in France, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden, Italy, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Korea, Philippines and Singapore. * * * Arrow Electronics senior subordinated stock continues to carry Moody's Investors Service's Ba1 rating. The company's senior preferred stock is rated at Ba2. DELPHI CORP: Lenders Have Problems Syndicating US$6.1 Bln Loan -------------------------------------------------------------- Delphi Corp.'s plan to secure $6.1 billion in financing for its exit from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection is in jeopardy as bank lenders tried to cope with credit markets that remain virtually shut, The Wall Street Journal says, citing people familiar with the matter. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Global Markets, which agreed to arrange funding for Delphi, are having difficulties syndicating the loan to other lenders, the Journal's source said. The Journal's Jeffrey McCracken and John D. Stoll relate that hedge funds and other investors dislike the borrowing terms, saying that they aren't priced appropriately for the risk involved. Investors and others involved in the matter say Delphi's former parent, General Motors Corp., may have to step in and provide financing to fill the gap, the Journal relates. Yet too much GM involvement might spook stock investors, who don't want Delphi too beholden to GM and its price-cutting demands, the Journal says. Fritz Henderson, GM's chief financial officer, has said GM is exploring alternatives in the event Delphi cannot obtain the Chapter 11 exit financing it planned, Dow Jones Newswires say. Mr. Henderson, however, didn't give any details on what kind of alternatives GM was exploring with Delphi and its investor group, Dow Jones notes. "Our objective is to have Delphi exit," Mr. Henderson said in an interview, WSJ notes. "What we've tried to do is be constructive with Delphi and the plan-investors as to how we play a role." KeyBanc analyst Brett Hoselton said in a note to investors Tuesday that GM may have to provide financing itself, Dow Jones reports. Delphi could consider trying to get a smaller exit-financing package, but falling U.S. auto sales and lowered forecasts for GM sales in 2008 "probably mean Delphi needs more money, not less," WSJ quotes a person familiar with Delphi's talks with their lenders. "Any logical person would look at the situation in the U.S. economy and say Delphi needs more," that source told WSJ. As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Europe on Feb. 5, 2008, Delphi and its debtor-affiliates expect to consummate their First Amended Joint Plan of Reorganization on or before March 31, 2008, Delphi Corp. Vice President and Chief Restructuring Officer John D. Sheehan said in a regulatory filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Europe on Jan. 10, 2008, the Debtors reduced their Exit Financing from the Court- approved US$6.8 billion to US$6.1 billion. The reduced facilities include: (a) US$1.6 billion in an asset-backed revolving credit facility; (b) US$3.7 billion in a first-lien term loan facility; and (c) US$825 million in a second lien term loan facility. The TCR-Europe reported Jan. 31, 2008, that the Honorable Robert Drain of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York permits members of the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors and the Official Committee of Equity Security Holders appointed in Delphi's bankruptcy cases to participate in any syndicate of lenders assembled to provide exit financing facilities for the Debtors' emergence from Chapter 11. About Delphi Corp. Headquartered in Troy, Michigan, Delphi Corporation (PINKSHEETS: DPHIQ) -- http://www.delphi.com/-- is the single supplier of vehicle electronics, transportation components, integrated systems and modules, and other electronic technology. The company's technology and products are present in more than 75 million vehicles on the road worldwide. Delphi has regional headquarters in Japan, Brazil and France. The company filed for chapter 11 protection on Oct. 8, 2005 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Lead Case No. 05-44481). John Wm. Butler Jr., Esq., John K. Lyons, Esq., and Ron E. Meisler, Esq., at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, represent the Debtors in their restructuring efforts. Robert J. Rosenberg, Esq., Mitchell A. Seider, Esq., and Mark A. Broude, Esq., at Latham & Watkins LLP, represents the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors. As of March 31, 2007, the Debtors' balance sheet showed US$11,446,000,000 in total assets and $23,851,000,000 in total debts. The Court approved Delphi's First Amended Joint Disclosure Statement and related solicitation procedures for the solicitation of votes on the First Amended Plan on Dec. 20, 2007. The Court confirmed the Debtors' First Amended Plan on Jan. 25, 2008. (Delphi Bankruptcy News; Bankruptcy Creditors' Service Inc., http://bankrupt.com/newsstand/or 215/945-7000) * * * As previously reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Europe, Moody's Investors Service assigned ratings to Delphi Corporation for the company's financing for emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection: Corporate Family Rating of (P)B2; US$3.7 billion of first lien term loans, (P)Ba3; and US$0.825 billion of 2nd lien term debt, (P)B3. In addition, a Speculative Grade Liquidity rating of SGL-2 representing good liquidity was assigned. The outlook is stable. Standard & Poor's Ratings Services in the meantime said it expects to assign its 'B' corporate credit rating to Delphi upon the company's emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which may occur by the end of the first quarter of 2008. S&P expects the outlook to be negative. In addition, Standard & Poor's expects to assign these issue-level ratings: a 'B+' issue rating (one notch above the corporate credit rating), and '2' recovery rating to the company's proposed US$3.7 billion senior secured first-lien term loan; and a 'B-' issue rating (one notch below the corporate creditrating), and '5' recovery rating to the company's proposed US$825 million senior secured second-lien term loan. ============= G E R M A N Y ============= DITTRICHBAU GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends March 7 --------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of DITTRICHBAU GmbH have until March 7, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Dirk Herzig. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:30 a.m. on April 9, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Chemnitz Hall 24 Fuerstenstrasse 21-23 09130 Chemnitz Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Dr. Dirk Herzig Promenadenstrasse 3 09111 Chemnitz Germany Tel: (0371) 382370 Fax: (0371) 3823710 E-mail: DHerzig@schubra.de The District Court of Chemnitz opened bankruptcy proceedings against DITTRICHBAU GmbH on Jan. 30, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: DITTRICHBAU GmbH Attn: Markus Dittrich, Manager Falkensteiner Strasse 5 08239 Trieb Germany ELP-MEDIEN: Claims Registration Period Ends March 5 --------------------------------------------------- Creditors of ELP-Medien und Verlags GmbH have until March 5, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Sebastian Braun. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:00 a.m. on March 26, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Offenbach am Main Hall 162N First Floor Kaiserstrasse 63065 Offenbach am Main Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Dr. Sebastian Braun Josef-Schmitt-Strasse 10 97922 Lauda-Koenigshofen Germany Tel: 09343/2065 Fax: 09343/3833 The District Court of Offenbach am Main opened bankruptcy proceedings against ELP-Medien und Verlags GmbH on Jan. 22, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: ELP-Medien und Verlags GmbH Bieberer Str. 1-7 63065 Offenbach am Main Germany ERLEBNISGARTEN LUDWIGSHOEHE: Claims Registration Ends March 6 ------------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Erlebnisgarten Ludwigshoehe GmbH have until March 6, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Joachim Exner. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:30 a.m. on April 9, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Nuremberg Meeting Hall 152/I Flaschenhofstr. 35 Nuremberg Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Joachim Exner Stahlstr. 17, 90411 Nuremberg Germany Tel: 0911/951285-0 Fax: 0911/951285-10 The District Court of Nuremberg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Erlebnisgarten Ludwigshoehe GmbH on Jan. 31, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Erlebnisgarten Ludwigshoehe GmbH Ludwigshoehe 1 90607 Rueckersdorf Germany HANSE TREUHAND: Claims Registration Ends March 4 ------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Hanse Treuhand GmbH have until March 4, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Dr. jur. Stefan N. Frielinghaus. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:00 a.m. on April 7, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Schwerin Hall 7 Demmlerplatz 14 19053 Schwerin Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Dr. jur. Stefan N. Frielinghaus Alexandrinenstr. 17 19055 Schwerin Germany The District Court of Schwerin opened bankruptcy proceedings against Hanse Treuhand GmbH on Jan. 21, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Hanse Treuhand GmbH Attn: Reinhard Hasse, Manager Grevesmuehlener Strasse 8 23936 Mallentin Germany IKB DEUTSCHE: KfW May Sell Deutche Post Stake for Rescue Funds -------------------------------------------------------------- State-owned KfW Bankengruppe may issue a convertible bond on its 31% stake in Deutsche Post World Net AG to raise EUR1 billion in fresh funds for capital-depleted IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG, Reuters reports citing sources privy with the matter. IKB, in which KfW holds a 37.8% stake, is reportedly needing up to EUR2 billion in fresh capital, EUR500 million of which is needed in the short term, Financial Times Deutscheland relates. KfW may have to bail out IKB for the third time after the bank's other shareholders refused to finance the company's restructuring, FT reports. According to news agency dpa, the German government may also grant KfW a loan as an alternative means of raising capital. "The government will have to bail out IKB, if no other solution is found, because an insolvency would be very bad for the German financial system," Philipp Haesller at Equinet Institutional Services told FT. "The question is not whether there will be a bail-out but who will pay and how much." KfW had agreed in July 2007 to take over all of IKB's obligations related to Rhineland Funding when the vehicle's commercial paper couldn't be sold to investors following the U.S. subprime crisis. In December 2007, a KfW-led banking pool agreed to cover US$520 million in risks for IKB, which brought the cost of the rescue to EUR6.1 billion. IKB had notified Bundesbank and BaFin that it could face more liquidity problems if it fails to secure necessary financing. About IKB Deutsche Headquartered in Dusseldorf, Germany, IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG -- http://www.ikb.de/-- pioneered the long-term industrial loan and provides medium-sized companies with long-term financing. The bank operates in several German locations, as well as branches in the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Spain and France. IKB had previously invested in securitized loans on the US market for subprime mortgages, which are now almost worthless. This resulted in a deep-seated crisis within the bank, pushing it on the brink of bankruptcy. * * * As reported in the TCR-Europe on Jan. 25, 2008, Moody's Investors Service downgraded the bank financial strength rating of IKB Deutsche Industriebank to E+ from D-. The outlook on the BFSR is now developing. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Jan. 9, 2008, Fitch Ratings has upgraded IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG's Individual rating to 'E' from 'F'. The TCR-Europe also reported on Dec. 13, 2007, that Fitch Ratings downgraded the loan facilities provided by IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG and IKB International S.A. to Havenrock II Limited as: -- US$165,000,000 loan provided by IKB International: downgraded to 'CC/DR2' from 'BBB+' Outlook Negative; -- US$404,875,000 Facility C loan provided by IKB: downgraded to 'CC/DR2' from 'BBB+'; Outlook Negative; -- US$43,750,000 Facility B loan provided by IKB: downgraded to 'CC/DR2' from 'B+'; Outlook Negative; and -- US$11,375,000 Facility A loan provided by IKB: downgraded to 'CC/DR2' from 'CCC'; Outlook Negative. IPSER GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends February 25 ------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Ipser GmbH have until Feb. 25, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Andreas Wolff. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 11:00 a.m. on March 11, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Freiburg Hall 1 Holzmarkt 2 79098 Freiburg i.Br. Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Andreas Wolff Zasiusstr. 35 79102 Freiburg i. Br. Germany Tel: 0761/75323 The District Court of Freiburg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Ipser GmbH on Feb. 1, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Ipser GmbH Ihringer Landstr. 16 79206 Breisach Germany Attn: Armin Ipser, Manager Kreuzkopfstr. 25 79100 Freiburg Germany J. JULIUS: Claims Registration Ends March 1 ------------------------------------------- Creditors of J. Julius Stumpf r+e+g GmbH have until March 1, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Dr. Stefan Oppermann. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 10:30 a.m. on April 1, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Nuremberg Meeting Hall 152/I Flaschenhofstr. 35 Nuremberg Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Dr. Stefan Oppermann Aussere Sulzbacher Strasse 118 90491 Nuremberg Germany Tel: 0911/59890-0 Fax: 0911/59890-11 The District Court of Nuremberg opened bankruptcy proceedings against J. Julius Stumpf r+e+g GmbH on Jan. 28, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: J. Julius Stumpf r+e+g GmbH Attn: Elisabeth Stumpf, Manager Ansbacher Strasse 125 90449 Nuremberg Germany JEREBITZ GMBH: Claims Registration Ends March 4 ----------------------------------------------- Creditors of Jerebitz GmbH & Co. KG have until March 4, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Peter Theiss. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 8:45 a.m. on March 11, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Saarbruecken Meeting Hall 24 Second Floor Vopeliusstrasse 2 66280 Sulzbach Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report at 8:45 a.m. on March 25, 2008, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Peter Theiss Dudweiler Strasse 4 66111 Saarbruecken Germany Tel: (0681) 9404 180 Fax: (0681) 9404 181 The District Court of Saarbruecken opened bankruptcy proceedings against Jerebitz GmbH & Co. KG on Jan. 25, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Jerebitz GmbH & Co. KG Attn: Franz Jerebitz, Manager Metzer Str. 105 66802 Ueberherrn-Felsberg Germany JUERGEN WOLFF: Claims Registration Period Ends March 7 ------------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Juergen Wolff Sammeln und Service GmbH have until March 7, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Thomas Steger. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:00 a.m. on April 4, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Bonn Meeting Hall W 1.26 First Floor William-Strasse 23 53111 Bonn Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Thomas Steger Koelnstrasse 135 53757 Sankt Augustin Germany Tel: 02241/90600 Fax: 02241/906090 The District Court of Bonn opened bankruptcy proceedings against Juergen Wolff Sammeln und Service GmbH on Jan. 22, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Juergen Wolff Sammeln und Service GmbH Flughafenstrasse 61 53842 Troisdorf Germany KLUTH LOGISTIC: Claims Registration Period Ends March 7 ------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Kluth Logistic und Transport GmbH & Co. KG have until March 7, 2008, to register their claims with court- appointed insolvency manager Dirk Decker. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 11:15 a.m. on April 7, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Schwerin Hall 7 Demmlerplatz 14 19053 Schwerin Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Dirk Decker Obotritenring 98 19053 Schwerin Germany The District Court of Schwerin opened bankruptcy proceedings against Kluth Logistic und Transport GmbH & Co. KG on Jan. 29, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Kluth Logistic und Transport GmbH & Co. KG Waldweg 4 19288 Ludwigslust Germany NUTHE BAU: Claims Registration Ends March 4 ------------------------------------------- Creditors of Nuthe Bau GmbH have until March 4, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Andre Schirrmeister. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 2:10 p.m. on April 1, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Dessau Hall 123 Willy-Lohmann-Str. 33 Dessau Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Andre Schirrmeister Magdeburger Strasse 23 06112 Halle Germany Tel: 0345/2311111 Fax: 0345/2311199 The District Court of Dessau opened bankruptcy proceedings against Nuthe Bau GmbH on Jan. 22, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Nuthe Bau GmbH Kirschallee 3 39261 Zerbst Germany Attn: H. Redling, Manager Jeversche Str. 18 39261 Zerbst Germany OBJEKTBAU HOESS: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 ------------------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Objektbau Hoess GmbH have until Feb. 29, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Hans-Joerg Derra. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 10:00 a.m. on March 12, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Ravensburg Hall 127 Herrenstr. 42 88212 Ravensburg Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Hans-Joerg Derra Frauenstr. 14 89073 Ulm Germany The District Court of Ravensburg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Objektbau Hoess GmbH on Feb. 1, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Objektbau Hoess GmbH Attn: Sybille Hoess, Manager Am Schwarzenbach 20 88239 Wangen Germany PI-GA GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 ------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Pi-Ga GmbH have until Feb. 29, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Matthias Landwehr. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 11:00 a.m. on April 1, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Detmold Meeting Room 12 Ground Floor Gerichtsstr. 6 32756 Detmold Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Matthias Landwehr Gerichtsstr. 12 32791 Lage Germany The District Court of Detmold opened bankruptcy proceedings against Pi-Ga GmbH on Feb. 1, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Pi-Ga GmbH Leopoldstr. 8a 32657 Lemgo Germany Attn: Guenther Weyers, Manager Clara-Immerwahr-Str. 17 32657 Lemgo Germany PLUS.TV: Claims Registration Period Ends February 28 ---------------------------------------------------- Creditors of plus.tv Thueringen GmbH have until Feb. 28, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Rechtsanwalt Nolte. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:00 a.m. on March 13, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Erfurt Hall 12 Judicial Center Rudolfstr. 46 99092 Erfurt Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Rechtsanwalt Nolte Peterstr. 5 99084 Erfurt Germany The District Court of Erfurt opened bankruptcy proceedings against plus.tv Thueringen GmbH on Jan. 30, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: plus.tv Thueringen GmbH Attn: Klaus Rehm, Manager Schmidtstedter Strasse 34 99084 Erfurt Germany POWER-MAN GMBH: Claims Registration Ends March 4 ------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Power-Man GmbH have until March 4, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Dr. Steffen Koch. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:40 a.m. on April 8, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Hannover Hall 226 Second Upper Floor Service Bldg. Hamburger Allee 26 30161 Hannover Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Dr. Steffen Koch Sophienstr. 1 30159 Hannover Germany Tel: 0511 353991-0 Fax: 0511 353991-10 The District Court of Hannover opened bankruptcy proceedings against Power-Man GmbH on Jan. 25, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Power-Man GmbH Iltisweg 41 31515 Wunstorf Germany Attn: Slawomir Kopczyk, Manager z. Zt. in U-Haft JVA Uelzen Abt. Lueneburg I Markt 7 C 21335 Lueneburg Germany PROPEC GMBH: Claims Registration Ends March 4 --------------------------------------------- Creditors of propec GmbH have until March 4, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Christoph Mathern. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on April 15, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Chemnitz Fuerstenstrasse 21-23 09130 Chemnitz Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Christoph Mathern Kanzlerstr. 32-34 09112 Chemnitz Germany Tel:(0371) 4909167 Fax:(0371) 4909444 E-mail: mail@poessl.com The District Court of Chemnitz opened bankruptcy proceedings against propec GmbH on Jan. 24, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: propec GmbH Attn: Telsche Carstens-Brauser-Jung, Manager Rand 8 09526 Heidersdorf Germany SHOW IT NEUSS: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 ---------------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Show It Neuss GmbH have until Feb. 29, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Georg Kreplin. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 9:00 a.m. on March 19, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Duesseldorf Meeting Hall A 357 Muehlenstrasse 34 40213 Duesseldorf Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Georg Kreplin Breite Strasse 27 40213 Duesseldorf Germany The District Court of Duesseldorf opened bankruptcy proceedings against Show It Neuss GmbH on Feb. 1, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Show It Neuss GmbH Liedmannstrasse 22 41460 Neuss Germany AttnL Lars Olaf Hans Niewoehner, Manager Reuschenberger Strasse 90 41472 Neuss Germany WILHELM ROEGELS: Claims Registration Period Ends February 29 ------------------------------------------------------------ Creditors of Spedition Wilhelm Roegels GmbH & Co KG have until Feb. 29, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Dr. Joerg Bornheimer. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting at 10:00 a.m. on March 27, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager 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 Second Floor Isle 2 42103 Wuppertal Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Dr. Joerg Bornheimer Turmhof 15 42103 Wuppertal Germany Tel: 0202/49 37 00 Fax: 0202/4937099 The District Court of Wuppertal opened bankruptcy proceedings against Spedition Wilhelm Roegels GmbH & Co KG on Feb. 1, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Spedition Wilhelm Roegels GmbH & Co KG Walter-Freitag-Str. 1 42899 Remscheid Germany WILZE GMBH: Claims Registration Period Ends March 4 --------------------------------------------------- Creditors of Wilze GmbH have until March 4, 2008, to register their claims with court-appointed insolvency manager Klaus- Christof Ehrlicher. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on April 3, 2008, at which time the insolvency manager will present his first report on the insolvency proceedings. The meeting of creditors will be held at: The District Court of Bamberg Synagogenplatz 1 96047 Bamberg Germany The Court will also verify the claims set out in the insolvency manager's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors' committee or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. The insolvency manager can be reached at: Klaus-Christof Ehrlicher Rosenauer Str. 22 96450 Coburg Germany Tel: 09561/8034-0 Fax: 09561/8034-34 The District Court of Bamberg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Wilze GmbH on Jan. 28, 2008. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. The Debtor can be reached at: Wilze GmbH Attn: Manuela Wilze, Manager Sauerstr. 31 96173 Oberhaid Germany ============= I R E L A N D ============= VISAGE CDO I: Moody's Junks Three Deferrable Note Classes --------------------------------------------------------- Moody's Investors Service downgraded and left on review for further downgrade five classes of notes issued by Visage CDO I plc. These rating actions are a response to severe credit deterioration in the underlying portfolio. The transaction is a cash and synthetic hybrid CDO, with the underlying portfolio containing 90% ABS CDOs and 10% Commercial Real Estate CDOs from the 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 vintages. Of the entire portfolio, 50% of the assets by volume have been downgraded, placed on review for downgrade, or both since October 2007. In addition, 2.55% of the portfolio by volume is currently rated Ca. Moody's will continue to monitor all deals with exposure to US subprime RMBS and ABS CDOs, and will take further actions in respect of all CDOs placed under review for downgrade once the extent of actual downgrades to US RMBS and ABS CDO vintages becomes known. These rating actions are: * Visage CDO I PLC: (1) US$56,000,000 Class A Senior Floating Rate Notes due 2051 -- Current Rating: Ba3, on review for downgrade -- Prior Rating: Aaa, on review for downgrade (2) US$40,000,000 Class B Senior Floating Rate Notes due 2051 -- Current Rating: B1, on review for downgrade -- Prior Rating: Aa1, on review for downgrade (3) US$20,000,000 Class C Deferrable Floating Rate Notes due 2051 -- Current Rating: Caa1, on review for downgrade -- Prior Rating: Aa3, on review for downgrade (4) US$10,000,000 Class D Deferrable Floating Rate Notes due 2051 -- Current Rating: Caa2, on review for downgrade -- Prior Rating: A1, on review for downgrade (5) US$18,000,000 Class E Deferrable Floating Rate Notes due 2051 -- Current Rating: Caa3, on review for downgrade -- Prior Rating: A3, on review for downgrade ========= I T A L Y ========= ALITALIA SPA: AirOne Woos Lombardy Investors to Join Bid -------------------------------------------------------- AirOne S.p.A. chairman Carlo Toto is inviting businessmen from the Lombardy region to join the airline's bid to acquire the Italian government's 49.9% stake in Alitalia S.p.A., Reuters reports. According to the report, Mr. Toto held a meeting with Gaetano Micciche, head of Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A.'s corporate division, and other business leaders in the region, where Milan Malpensa airport is located. Around 20 businessmen expressed interest in joining the bid, Reuters relates, citing local reports. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Feb. 7, 2008, AirOne said its offer will be financially backed by Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley and Nomura Holdings Plc. TPG Inc. and Pirelli & S.p.A. chairman Marco Tronchetti Provera may join AirOne in its Alitalia bid. Reuters said MyChef may also participate in the offer. Politicians and businessmen in the region have expressed concern on the impact of the possible sale of the stake to Air France- KLM SA, which business plan for Alitalia entails downscaling operations at Malpensa. An official at Italian slot coordinator Assoclearance has said that Alitalia will release around 180 of its 357 slots at Malpensa as part of its downscale strategy. Alitalia said the slots are unused ones during the summer season, which starts March 30, 2008, and ends Oct. 25, 2008. AirOne said it would present a binding offer once it wins an appeal at the Italian Regional Administration Court of Lazio. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Feb. 5, 2008, AP Holding S.p.A., investment arm of AirOne, has filed an appeal with the court to declare null and void a Dec. 28, 2007, decision of Italy's Ministry of Economy and Finance to commence exclusive talks to sell the Italy's stake to Air France. AirOne winning the suit would allow it to present its binding offer for the state-owned carrier. As reported in the TCR-Europe on Jan. 17, 2008, Alitalia and Italy have commenced exclusive sale talks with Air France-KLM. The carriers have until mid-March to reach an agreement, which would be approved by the government. In its non-binding offer, Air France plans to: -- acquire 100% of the shares of Alitalia through an exchange offer; -- acquire 100% of Alitalia convertible bonds; and -- immediately inject at least EUR750 million into Alitalia through a capital increase, that will be open to all shareholders and be fully underwritten by Air France. About Alitalia Headquartered in Rome, Italy, Alitalia S.p.A. -- http://www.alitalia.it/-- provides air travel services for passengers and air transport of cargo on national, international and inter-continental routes. The Italian government owns 49.9% of Alitalia. The company has operations in Argentina. Despite a EUR1.4 billion state-backed restructuring in 1997, Alitalia posted net losses of EUR256 million and EUR907 million in 2000 and 2001 respectively. Alitalia posted EUR93 million in net profits in 2002 after a EUR1.4 billion capital injection. The carrier booked annual net losses of EUR520 million in 2003, EUR813 million in 2004, EUR168 million in 2005, and EUR625.6 million in 2006. Italian Transport Minister Alessandro Bianchi has warned that Alitalia may file for bankruptcy if the current attempt to sell the government's 49.9% stake fails. ARTIGIANFIDI VARESE: Fitch Affirms IDR at BB with Stable Outlook ---------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings has affirmed the Long- and Short-term Issuer Default ratings of Artigianfidi Varese. The Outlook for the Long-term IDR remain Stable. At the same time, the agency has downgraded the Insurer Financial Strength ratings by one notch to equalize with respective Long-term IDR. The Outlook for the IFS ratings is Stable. Artigianfidi Varese: -- Long-term IDR: affirmed at 'BB+'; Outlook Stable -- Short-term IDR: affirmed at 'B' -- IFS lowered to 'BB+' from 'BBB-'; Outlook Stable Italy's confidi are specialist credit guarantors. The IFS ratings assigned reflect both their ability to meet these obligations according to the terms of the guarantee contracts and expected recoveries received by claimants. The lowering of the IFS ratings to equalize with respective Long-term IDR reflects Fitch's view that there is no clear differentiation between the prospective recovery by claimants under guarantees and recovery under other potential obligations. This partly reflects recent changes in the sector, including a legislative change that allows the confidi to classify as equity certain categories of subsidies and contributions received in the past from public and private entities. These contributions have to date been earmarked to cover specific types of guarantees and have been considered by Fitch to be effective collateral specifically covering the guarantees. In addition, most confidi have included credit risk mitigation in their guarantee agreements with partner banks, whereby the amounts banks can receive from the confidi for credit losses are capped. Fitch considers the overall changes in the confidi sector positive, particularly the planned regulatory transformation of the confidi rated by Fitch into financial institutions under Art. 107 of the Italian Banking Act regulated by Banca d'Italia. The ratings of Artigianfidi Varese reflect its small size, modest profitability and higher problem guarantees relative to total outstanding guarantees compared with rated peers. The ratings also take into account stronger capital ratios than for its peers despite weak internal capital generation and more conservative business expansion, as well as a track record in carrying out operations unadventurously and progress in improving risk management tools and procedures. AV's small size gives it only a limited possibility of an upgrade. Stronger profitability, better asset quality and substantially higher capitalisation might assist. Negative pressure on the ratings would derive from any substantial deterioration in asset quality or capitalisation. AV is a cooperative set up in Varese in northern Italy in 1996. Its members are small, local artisan companies, to which it provides credit guarantees. BERRY PLASTICS: Loan Refinancing Cues Moody's to Junk Notes ----------------------------------------------------------- Moody's Investors Service affirmed the Corporate Family Rating of B3 of Berry Plastics Corporation (fka Berry Plastics Holdings Corporation) and downgraded certain instrument ratings. The outlook is stable. This rating action is in response to the company's announcement on Feb. 11, 2008, that it had entered into a US$520 million senior secured bridge loan facility (not rated by Moody's) to finance its US$500 million acquisition of Captive Holdings, Inc. Additional instrument rating actions are detailed below. The affirmation of Berry's Corporate Family Rating reflects the company's success to date integrating previous acquisitions, the current acquisition's neutral impact on credit metrics, the potential for significant synergies, and Captive's strategic fit with Berry's core rigid plastic business. Captive's emphasis on the food, beverage and healthcare segments (approximately 80% of sales for the twelve months ended Sept. 30, 2007) helps balance and offset Berry's more cyclical flexible films, adhesives and coated products segment. Additionally, the company's broad line of bottling products complements Berry's broad line of closures products and there is little overlap between the top ten customers for each company. The geographic footprint of Captive's manufacturing facilities also fills some important gaps in Berry's footprint. Offsetting these positives, are the increased operating and integration risk of another material acquisition before Berry has finished integrating its largest acquisition to date (the recent acquisition of Covalence Specialty Materials Corporation). The increase in risk leaves little room in Berry's profile for further material acquisitions or negative variance in operating performance in the intermediate term. The downgrade of certain instrument ratings of Berry reflects the increase in first lien secured debt and the deterioration in asset coverage that results for the second lien instruments in accordance with Moody's loss-given-default methodology. Moody's took these rating actions for Berry Plastics Corporation: -- Affirmed Corporate Family Rating of B3 -- Affirmed Probability of Default Rating of B3 -- Downgraded US$1,200 million senior secured term loan due 2015 to B1 (LGD2, 27%) from Ba3 (LGD2, 23%) -- Downgraded US$225 million senior secured second lien FRN's due 2014 to Caa1 (LGD4, 63%) from B3 (LGD4, 56%) -- Downgraded US$525 million senior secured second lien notes due 2014 to Caa1 (LGD4, 63%) from B3 (LGD4, 56%) -- Affirmed US$265 million senior subordinated notes due 2016 Caa2 (LGD5, to 85% from 93%) Moody's took these rating actions for Berry Plastics Group, Inc.: -- Affirmed US$500 million senior unsecured term loan due 2014, Caa2 (LGD6, to 94% from 93%) -- Affirmed Speculative Grade Liquidity Rating of SGL-2 The rating outlook for Berry is stable. The ratings and outlook are subject to receipt of final documentation. Based in Evansville, Indiana, Berry Plastics Corporation is one of the world's leading suppliers of rigid plastic packaging products, serving customers in the food and beverage, healthcare, household chemicals, personal care, home improvement, and other industries. Net sales for the twelve months ended Sept. 30, 2007 amounted to approximately US$3 billion. Berry has 25 manufacturing facilities worldwide, including in Italy, England, and Hong Kong and more than 6,800 employees. Captive is headquartered in Piscataway, New Jersey, manufactures blow-molded bottles and injection-molded closures for the food, healthcare, spirits and personal care end markets. The company operates 13 plants across the United States. Net sales for the twelve months ended Sept. 30, 2007 amounted to approximately US$289 million. NEAFIDI - SOCIETA: Fitch Holds BB IDR on Operating Profitability ---------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings has affirmed the Long- and Short-term Issuer Default ratings of NeaFidi - Societa Cooperativa di Garanzia Colletiva Fidi. The Outlook for the Long-term IDR remain Stable. At the same time, the agency has downgraded the Insurer Financial Strength ratings by one notch to equalize with respective Long-term IDR. The Outlook for the IFS ratings is Stable. NeaFidi - Societa Cooperativa di Garanzia Colletiva Fidi (Nea): -- Long-term IDR: affirmed at 'BB+'; Outlook Stable -- Short-term IDR: affirmed at 'B' -- IFS lowered to 'BB+' from 'BBB-'; Outlook Stable Italy's confidi are specialist credit guarantors. The IFS ratings assigned reflect both their ability to meet these obligations according to the terms of the guarantee contracts and expected recoveries received by claimants. The lowering of the IFS ratings to equalize with respective Long-term IDR reflects Fitch's view that there is no clear differentiation between the prospective recovery by claimants under guarantees and recovery under other potential obligations. This partly reflects recent changes in the sector, including a legislative change that allows the confidi to classify as equity certain categories of subsidies and contributions received in the past from public and private entities. These contributions have to date been earmarked to cover specific types of guarantees and have been considered by Fitch to be effective collateral specifically covering the guarantees. In addition, most confidi have included credit risk mitigation in their guarantee agreements with partner banks, whereby the amounts banks can receive from the confidi for credit losses are capped. Fitch considers the overall changes in the confidi sector positive, particularly the planned regulatory transformation of the confidi rated by Fitch into financial institutions under Art. 107 of the Italian Banking Act regulated by Banca d'Italia. The ratings for Nea reflect its mediocre operating profitability and its small size. They also take into account the secure mechanism it has in place to protect its equity from loan losses, as well as its conservative credit risk management and good capitalization. While Fitch considers that any rating uplift is currently limited, in the longer term, ratings might benefit from a sound record of substantially improved operating profitability and increased capital. A downgrade would derive from Nea's persistent inability to improve operating profitability over the medium-term or a marked deterioration of asset quality. Nea is a cooperative company based in Vicenza providing credit guarantees to SMEs. UNIONFIDI PIEMONTE: Fitch Affirms BB+ IDR on Low Capitalization --------------------------------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings has affirmed the Long- and Short-term Issuer Default ratings of Unionfidi Piemonte. The Outlook for the Long-term IDR remain Stable. At the same time, the agency has downgraded the Insurer Financial Strength ratings by one notch to equalize with respective Long-term IDR. The Outlook for the IFS ratings is Stable. Unionfidi Piemonte: -- Long-term IDR: affirmed at 'BB+'; Outlook Stable -- Short-term IDR: affirmed at 'B' -- IFS lowered to 'BB+' from 'BBB-'; Outlook Stable Italy's confidi are specialist credit guarantors. The IFS ratings assigned reflect both their ability to meet these obligations according to the terms of the guarantee contracts and expected recoveries received by claimants. The lowering of the IFS ratings to equalize with respective Long-term IDR reflects Fitch's view that there is no clear differentiation between the prospective recovery by claimants under guarantees and recovery under other potential obligations. This partly reflects recent changes in the sector, including a legislative change that allows the confidi to classify as equity certain categories of subsidies and contributions received in the past from public and private entities. These contributions have to date been earmarked to cover specific types of guarantees and have been considered by Fitch to be effective collateral specifically covering the guarantees. In addition, most confidi have included credit risk mitigation in their guarantee agreements with partner banks, whereby the amounts banks can receive from the confidi for credit losses are capped. Fitch considers the overall changes in the confidi sector positive, particularly the planned regulatory transformation of the confidi rated by Fitch into financial institutions under Art. 107 of the Italian Banking Act regulated by Banca d'Italia. The ratings of UPI reflect its scarce capitalization, weaker asset quality than some of its peers and frail profitability. They also take into account the improving internal organization, low market risk and the announced merger project with other two confidi, Confidi Provincie Lombarde (previously know as Confidi Milano) and Confidi Sardegna. UPI's management expects to complete the merger by end-2008. Fitch expects the resulting confidi to be well capitalized. The new confidi would be based in Turin and operate using UPI's IT system. Improvement in the ratings would first require a strengthening of UPI's capital and more satisfactory asset quality. Deterioration in asset quality or failure to raise new capital along with increasing volumes and risks could adversely affect them. UPI is a regional confidi that provides credit guarantees to SMEs. It was set up in 1975 and is based in Turin, in the region of Piedmont. =================== K A Z A K H S T A N =================== DAULET-SERVICE LTD: Proof of Claim Deadline Slated for March 11 --------------------------------------------------------------- LLP Daulet-Service Ltd. has declared insolvency. Creditors have until March 11, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: LLP Daulet-Service Ltd Micro District Taraz Ryskulov Str. Shymkent South Kazakhstan Kazakhstan Tel: 8 701 732 53-36 EKIBASTUZ ELECTRO: Creditors Must File Claims by March 11 --------------------------------------------------------- LLP Manufacturing Firm Ekibastuz Electro Motor has declared insolvency. Creditors have until March 11, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: LLP Manufacturing Firm Ekibastuz Electro Motor Pshembayev Str. 2 Ekibastuz Pavlodar Kazakhstan LD & K: Claims Filing Period Ends March 7 ----------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of South Kazakhstan has declared LLP LD & K insolvent. Creditors have until March 7, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of South Kazakhstan Ilyaev Str. 24 Shymkent South Kazakhstan Kazakhstan MALAISARY LLP: Creditors' Claims Due on March 7 ----------------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Almaty has declared LLP Afro Firm Malaisary insolvent. Creditors have until March 7, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Almaty Micro District Samal, 15-29 Taldykorgan Almaty Kazakhstan Tel: 8 (3282) 25-43-90 8 777 382 33-86 PARITET CORPUS: Claims Registration Ends March 7 ------------------------------------------------ The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Almaty has declared LLP Paritet Corpus insolvent on Dec. 12, 2007. Creditors have until March 7, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of Almaty Office 427 Maulenov Str. 92 Almaty Tel: 8 (7272) 67-63-55 8 701733 36-24 PROM AGRO: Proof of Claim Deadline Slated for March 11 ------------------------------------------------------ LLP Prom Agro Tech Service has declared insolvency. Creditors have until March 11, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: LLP Prom Agro Tech Service Kalinin Str. 1 Pavlodar Kazakhstan RIO ASTANA: Creditors Must File Claims by March 11 -------------------------------------------------- LLP Rio Astana has declared insolvency. Creditors have until March 11, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: LLP Rio Astana Beibitshilik Str. 16 Saryarka Astana Kazakhstan STROYOPTSERVICE-LTD: Claims Filing Period Ends March 11 ------------------------------------------------------- LLP Construction Company Stroyoptservice-Ltd. has declared insolvency. Creditors have until March 11, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: LLP Construction Company Stroyoptservice-Ltd. Pushkin Str. 134-21 Astana Kazakhstan TEPLOCOMMUNENERGO: Creditors Must File Claims by March 7 -------------------------------------------------------- The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of East Kazakhstan has declared State Utility Enterprise Teplocommunenergo insolvent. Creditors have until March 7, 2008, to submit written proofs of claims to: The Specialized Inter-Regional Economic Court of East Kazakhstan Auezov Str. 111 Semei 071409, East Kazakhstan Kazakhstan Tel: 8 (7222) 34-38-29 8 (7222) 34-05-07 =================== K Y R G Y Z S T A N =================== AL-MIR LLC: Creditors Must File Claims by February 22 ----------------------------------------------------- LLC Al-Mir has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Feb. 22, 2008, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLC Al-Mir Micro District Kugart, 16 Djalal-Abad Kyrgyzstan TAGAI LLC: Claims Filing Period Ends February 22 ------------------------------------------------ LLC Tagai has declared insolvency. Creditors have until Feb. 22, 2008, to submit written proofs of claim to: LLC Tagai Toktonaliyev Str. 40 Bishkek Kyrgyzstan Tel: (+996 312) 54-56-48 =========== P O L A N D =========== LEAR CORP: Forms Global Operating Structure; Names 2 Executives --------------------------------------------------------------- Lear Corporation is establishing a global operating structure for its two business groups. Accordingly, Louis R. Salvatore has been appoin