LyondellBasell adds Luxembourg holding company to Chapter 11 filing

LONDON (ICIS news)–LyondellBasell has added its Luxembourg-based holding company to its Chapter 11 protection filing to shield the European affiliate from claims by certain financial and US trade creditors, the company said on Friday.

LyondellBasell Industries AF SCA is a holding company incorporated in Luxembourg. It does not manufacture or sell products, and has no employees, the company said.

The company added that it was exercising an option available under US law to prevent creditors from enforcing guarantees by LyondellBasell AF SCA for pre-petition obligations of LyondellBasell’s US businesses.

It would also prevent bondholders of senior notes due in 2015 from potentially pursuing remedies against the European subsidiary after an interest payment due on the notes in February was not paid, the company said.

The company obtained a 60-day restraining order from the US bankruptcy court in February to allow time to protect its European assets from these claims.

LyondellBasell stressed that extending Chapter 11 protection to LyondellBasell Industries AF SCA was not an insolvency proceeding under any European law.

“LyondellBasell continues to conduct business worldwide while the company develops its reorganisation plan as part of the Chapter 11 process,” said Ed Dineen, chief operating officer.

“All LyondellBasell companies remain committed to maintaining mutually beneficial relationships with suppliers and to serving customers as they did before this voluntary action,” he added.

LyondellBasell’s US operations and a holding company in Germany voluntarily filed to reorganise under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code on 6 January.

Lyondell Chemical Company is one of the 79 LyondellBasell affiliates included in the original filing. LyondellBasell has obtained approximately $8bn (€6.1bn) in debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing to fund continuing operations.

($1 = €0.76)

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