Bankrupt wind turbine maker Senvion in talks to buy time for rescue deal
The company is in discussions with creditors to extend a 100 million euro ($111 million) insolvency loan so it can avoid having to agree to sell at any price
FRANKFURT: Bankrupt German wind turbine manufacturer Senvion is in talks to buy time to strike a rescue deal as negotiations with potential buyers of the company continue, people close to the matter said.
The company is in discussions with creditors to extend a 100 million euro ($111 million) insolvency loan so it can avoid having to agree to sell at any price, they added.
An original end-June deadline for final bids was dropped and a later envisaged end-July deadline is also being postponed, one of the people said.
Senvion in April filed for preliminary self-administration proceedings after the Hamburg-based company, which has more than a billion euros of debt, struggled following delays and penalties related to big projects.
The proceedings allow the company to optimise its structure by terminating unprofitable service agreements it had struck in the past.
Talks with Siemens unit Gamesa and Spain’s Acciona, Denmark’s Vestas as well as Japan’s Toshiba continue, the people said.
The potential buyers are aiming for a so-called asset deal, meaning they would take on the Senvion assets but not the holding company, while the insolvency supervisor may also opt for a debt-restructuring deal.
Bidders’ demand was high for the lucrative maintenance contracts, and low for production facilities, one source said.
Senvion and its adviser Rothschild declined to comment, while Gamesa, Acciona and Vestas declined to comment or were not immediately available for comment.
“Since Senvion’s petition for self-administration proceedings, Toshiba has been monitoring the situation, however, no decision has been made to date,” a Toshiba spokesman said. ($1 = 0.8982 euros)
Source: reuters
