LyondellBasell says creditors support reorganisation plan

24 December 2009 15:22  [Source: ICIS news]

TORONTO (ICIS news)--LyondellBasell said on Thursday it received substantial creditor support for its plan to reorganise the company and come out of US bankruptcy protection.

Among the measures taken by LyondellBasell were court filings to approve settlements of various claims by creditors and lenders, as well as a plan to possibly raise $2.8bn (€2.0bn) “through the purchase of equity contemporaneously with emergence from Chapter 11”, it said.

The company also entered into a “Plan Support Agreement” (PSA) with holders of significant amounts of its pre-petition secured debt, it said.

“The PSA represents an important and significant step toward obtaining a consensual reorganisation for LyondellBasell,” the company said.

Lyondell's proposed lender litigation settlement reflects an agreement with substantial senior debt holders to convert $18bn of debt into common equity and the allocation of that equity among those debt holders.

Unsecured creditors of Lyondell Chemical, which is among the US units of LyondellBasell, have urged that the company fairly evaluates proposals from suitors such as India’s Reliance.

Lyondell's equity committment agreement (ECA), which it entered into on 11 December, "does not prohibit the company from considering other bona fide proposals it may receive with respect to the purchase of its equity upon emergence," it said.

Reliance’s bid is said to be worth $10bn-$12bn, according to news reports.

LyondellBasell filed for US bankruptcy protection in January.

($1 = €0.70)

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By: Stefan Baumgarten
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