An Irish court has appointed an interim examiner, Michael McAteer from Grant Thornton, to examine the business plan of Irish incumbent Eircom.
Examinership is an Irish legal process similar to US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
An Eircom spokesman…
An Irish court has appointed an interim examiner, Michael McAteer from Grant Thornton, to examine the business plan of Irish incumbent Eircom.
Examinership is an Irish legal process similar to US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
An Eircom spokesman said that McAteer’s role will be to assess the company’s business plan and give the court an assurance that Eircom has a viable future once the debt has been reduced.
A full hearing on the examinership application is now set to be held on 18 April. This hearing will allow interested parties to make submissions. It will also consider the confirmation of McAteer’s appointment as the examiner.
Yesterday, three subsidiaries of the Eircom Group – Eircom, Meteor Mobile Communications, Irish Telecommunications Investments (ITI) – submitted an application to be placed in examinership. The three companies were offered court protection.
During the examinership process, a company’s assets are protected for a maximum of 100 days, while the company develops a survival plan. This period started for Eircom yesterday.
In its statement, Eircom said that the group had entered the examinership process in order to place its balance sheet on a stable financial footing for the medium and long term.
The spokesman confirmed that under its restructuring plan, Eircom will reduce its gross debt from €4bn (US$5.4bn) to €2.35bn (US$3.1bn).