Posted on 04/03/2003 3:33:16 PM PST by pttttt
US Review of Global Crossing Deal to Go Past March
Thu Mar 20, 2:41 PM ET
By Jeremy Pelofsky
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bankrupt Global Crossing Ltd. (Other OTC:GBLXQ - news) said on Thursday the U.S. government's review of the company's plan to sell a majority stake to two Asian companies would extend beyond March 31, and it asked for more time to exclusively file a reorganization plan.
The exclusivity period is due to expire March 31, but the fiber-optic network operator asked a federal bankruptcy judge to extend it until May 15 -- or if the purchase agreement were terminated, two weeks after that date, whichever came first.
A hearing is set for April 21 to hear the extension request, which would be the fourth such extension if granted.
Global Crossing had agreed to sell a 61.5 percent stake to Hong Kong conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. (0013.HK) and state-owned Singapore Technologies Telemedia Pte but withdrew its application on the deal before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) when it raised national security concerns.
Sources familiar with the process had said that the committee was worried about a U.S. telecommunications network being controlled by a company with strong ties to China.
The company has been in talks to restructure the deal, which could include making Hutchison, majority-owned by Hong Kong's richest man Li Ka-shing, a silent partner.
"The CFIUS review process is ongoing and will extend beyond the current March 31, 2003 extension of the exclusive filing period," Global Crossing said in filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
Global Crossing said an extension of the exclusivity period could also be needed if the company had to abandon its current reorganization plan because of failure to win regulatory approval or meet financial requirements.
"Without an extension of exclusivity, the debtors would be left to not only operate their business, but to do so while hurriedly working to formulate and negotiate a new or revised plan, assess competing plans that are filed, and contend with the destabilizing effect that such events would have on their business, employees, vendors, and customers," it said.
The bankruptcy court confirmed Global Crossing's plan to sell the stake to the Asian companies, but another carrier, IDT Corp. (NYSE:IDT - news), has said it would mount a $255 million rival bid for Global Crossing's high-speed network.
Global Crossing filed for bankruptcy protection in Jan. 2002 after buckling under $12.4 billion in debt and facing a soft economy, stiff competition in the telecommunications industry and a glut of network capacity.
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The insanity of the SELL-OUT continues. Has'nt anybody, I mean ANYBODY, ever questioned why Richard Perle is still a registered democRAT?
See "Democrat Hawk Whose Ghost Guides Bush" for more on this.
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