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Petroplus, the largest independent refiner and wholesaler of
petroleum products in Europe entered into various insolvency
proceedings in Switzerland, England and Wales, France, Germany and
Belgium on 24-27 January 2012 after the group failed to reach
agreement with its creditors to extend the deadline of its loan
repayments.
On 24 January 2012 the parent company, Petroplus Holdings AG,
announced that it and its subsidiaries had received notices of
acceleration from the lenders under its financing facilities
following unsuccessful negotiations to reopen credit lines to the
group. The company further went on to say that such acceleration
notice triggers default under $1.75 billion of senior notes and
convertible bonds. Trading of Petroplus Holdings AG's shares on
the Swiss SIX exchange was suspended on Monday, 23 January
2012.
England and Wales
On 24 January 2012 PWC partners Steven Pearson and Stephen
Oldfield were appointed as joint administrators of Petroplus
Refining and Marketing Limited and Steven Pearson and Ian Green
were appointed as joint administrators of Petroplus Refining
Teesside Limited.
The administrators act as the company's agent and it is
their duty to take control and possession of the assets of the
company. They owe their duty to the body of creditors as a whole.
The administrators derive their powers from English insolvency
legislation and they do not need to seek the approval of a judge in
carrying out their actions.
A statement by PWC said that "the Petroplus group has
faced well documented refinancing challenges and suffered as a
result of low refining margins and high restructuring
costs." Petroplus is a key-source of petrol for London
and the South East of England.
Switzerland
The Swiss parent company, Petroplus Holdings AG and its Swiss
subsidiary Petroplus Marketing AG filed for composition proceedings
(Nachlassstundung) in Switzerland on 25 January 2012. The
composition proceedings were granted and the Swiss court appointed
Brigitte Umbach-Spahn and Karl Wüthrich, partners at law firm
Wengen Plattner Rechtsanwalte, as administrators
(Sachwalter) for the assets of the those companies. An
English receiver was also appointed over the assets of the Swiss
companies physically located in the UK.
France
Petroplus' French subsidiary, Petroplus Raffinage
Petit-Couronne SAS was placed in "redressement
judiciaire" on 25 January 2012. The purpose of this
procedure is to safeguard the company's business, maintain its
activities, protect its employees, and clear its debts. Emmanuel
Hess and Hélène Bourbouloux of Selarl FHB have been
appointed as judicial administrators over the company and will be
focusing on either:
enabling the company to implement its own reorganisation plan,
if it can demonstrate that it will be in a position to repay its
creditors over a period of no more than 10 years; or
enabling potential acquirers to present offers in relation to
the company's business.
Other independent insolvency proceedings have been opened
against Petroplus Holdings France SAS and Petroplus Marketing
France SAS by the Tribunal de Commerce de Nanterre.
Germany
On 25 January 2012 Petroplus announced that its German
subsidiaries, including Petroplus Raffinerie Ingolstadt GmbH which
owns the Ingolstadt refinery, filed for insolvency proceedings with
the local court of Ingolstadt. The court appointed Dr. Michael
Jaffé in Munich, Germany, as preliminary insolvency
administrator for the assets of these companies on 24 and 25
January 2012, respectively.
Dr. Jaffé was appointed as a so-called "weak"
preliminary insolvency administrator, which means that the current
management formally continues to operate the business but that any
transactions require the preliminary insolvency administrator's
approval. The court has instructed Dr. Jaffé to evaluate
whether the companies' assets are sufficient to commence
"final" insolvency proceedings.
Belgium
On 27 January 2012 Petroplus announced that its Belgian
subsidiary, Belgian Refining Corporation N.V. which owns the
Antwerp refinery, has filed for judicial reorganisation
proceedings. According to news reports, the Antwerp refinery has
stopped operating after a shutdown procedure was initiated.
We have a dedicated team, with expertise in insolvency,
financing and commodities. We can advise clients who may be exposed
to Petroplus or who are considering transactions with the Petroplus
group in the UK, Switzerland, Germany or France.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.
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