Resita Steel Mill (CSR) will enter judiciary reorganisation, as the Court on Wednesday ruled that the company has entered payment default.
Syndic judge Ion Briac rejected all contesting documents filed by the representatives of US Noble Ventures, which own the steel mill, and favoured the creditors that had sued the company, Mediafax reports.
Moreover, the judge decided that Timisoara-based Fermoconsult SRL would be appointed CSR judiciary administrator.
The judiciary reorganisation was demanded by the County Employment and Professional Training Agency, for 72.3 billion lei in receivables, by the Pensions House, for 575.7 billion-lei receivables, Resita City Hall, for 14.6 billion-lei receivables and the County Health Insurance Department, for 122.1 billion lei-receivables.
A receivable statement submitted by Crosi Resita, for 1.1 billion lei in debts, will add to the other four reorganisation requests.
The ruling is definitive and executory, but can be appealed within 15 days. The creditors have the right to submit the receivable statements to the syndic judge in 30 days since the ruling was delivered. The judge will be entitled to summon the first assembly of CSR creditors.
US company Noble Ventures at the beginning of last June bought 94.4% in CSR from the former State Ownership Fund (SOF) and paid 85.25 million dollars. The deal was deemed as the largest American investment in Romania. Noble Ventures pledged to take over the steel mill's debts worth 1,120 billion lei, four times higher than the company's share capital.
The Americans should have paid 34.5 million dollars by September 2000 and 5 million dollars by January 31, 2001, standing for the first instalment of the share capital increase, but failed to do it.
Besides, some difficulties in paying the salaries emerged this January and led to unionists' protests. They organised several protest actions and carried negotiations with the Patronage, some of them mediated by the Government.
CSR troubles were discussed at the end of last month, when APAPS (Privatisation Authority) announced it was planning to cancel the contract signed with Noble Ventures because the investor failed to comply with part of the contractual pledges. This decision put an end to the unionists' protests.
Pentru alte știri, analize, articole și informații din business în timp real urmărește Ziarul Financiar pe WhatsApp Channels
