Indebted Latin American telco NII Holdings has announced a new restructuring agreement following its decision to sell Nextel Mexico to AT&T at the end of January for US$1.88bn.
NII, under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the last six months,…
Indebted Latin American telco NII Holdings has announced a new restructuring agreement following its decision to sell Nextel Mexico to AT&T at the end of January for US$1.88bn.
NII, under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the last six months, initially presented a restructuring plan in November, but this had to be reformulated after it announced the sale of its Mexican operations.
Under the terms of the new plan, NII’s creditors have agreed to reorganise their debt once the sale of Nextel Mexico completes.
The more than 70% of the holders of NII’s senior notes that agreed to the new plan will see their paper converted into cash and equity.
They will also receive compensation for “certain estate claims and claims related to the purported release of certain guarantees of the senior notes … that were scheduled to mature in 2016 and 2019”.
In the meantime NII’s creditors are providing US$350m in post-petition financing to fund the company until it completes the sale of Nextel Mexico. The disposal is expected to close in mid-2015 and is part of AT&T’s expansion into Mexico.
Steve Shindler, NII’s chief executive, said: “Reaching this agreement is another significant step forward in our reorganisation process.”
“We are focused on strengthening our balance sheet and improving our capital structure and liquidity in order to allow us to emerge as a stronger, healthier company that is well positioned for growth and profitability.”
US-based NII is planning to focus its efforts on its Brazilian subsidiary. It has already sold its units in Peru and Chile, and appears to be close to selling off its Argentinian business.
The holdco’s three operating subsidiaries are not included in the pending bankruptcy proceedings and continue to trade normally.
