/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/010427.mbx          T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                           E U R O P E

              Friday, April 27, 2001, Vol. 2, No. 83


                            Headlines

* A U S T R I A *

LIBRO AG: Widens Net Loss to 7.1 Million Euro

* C Z E C H   R E P U B L I C *

INVESTICNI A POSTOVNI: Czech Central Bank, CSOB Finish Audit
WOOD & COMPANY: To Close Hungary Office

* F R A N C E *

INTERCALL SA: Court Okays Liberty Surf Bid
MOULINEX SA: To Present Restructuring Plan

* G E R M A N Y *

DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG: Falls Into the Red
DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG: No Deterioration at Mitsubishu
INTERSHOP COMMUNICATIONS: Seeks Distribution Partners
PIXELPARK AG: Bertelsmann Agrees Cash Injection

* I R E L A N D *

EIRCOM PLC: O'Reilly Remains Mum on Bid

* L U X E M B O U R G *

SES ASTRA: Rating Under Review for Possible Downgrade

* P O L A N D *

ELEKTRIM SA: To Fight Order Blocking Rights

* R U S S I A *

MEDIA-MOST: Gazprom Unit Withdraws Suit

* S W I T Z E R L A N D *

ISL WORLDWIDE: FIFA to Refund Tournament Organizers
SAIRGROUP: French Airlines to Lay Off in June
SAIRGROUP: Receives Credit, Changes Name to Swissair
SAIRGROUP: Shareholders Approve Independent Audit

* U N I T E D   K I N G D O M *

BOOKHAM TECHNOLOGY: Loss Widens to 10.1 Million Pounds
CAMMELL LAIRD: MP Urges Blair to Help Keep Operation
CAMMELL LAIRD: Trade Secretary Advises Receivers
EDGBASTON GROUP: Goes Into Receivership
MARKS & SPENCER: Unions Call for Protest in London
RAILTRACK GROUP: Appoints New Finance Director


=============
A U S T R I A
=============


LIBRO AG: Widens Net Loss to 7.1 Million Euro
---------------------------------------------

Retailer and Internet group Libro AG is expected to show this or
next week, a widened net loss of 7.1 million euro for the
financial year ended February 28, compared with a loss of 1.4
million euro the year before, the April 25 edition of Dow Jones
said.

Analysts have cited the consolidation of Internet unit Lion.cc as
the main reason for the net loss.


===========================
C Z E C H   R E P U B L I C
============================


INVESTICNI A POSTOVNI: Czech Central Bank, CSOB Finish Audit
------------------------------------------------------------

Bank CSOB and the Czech central bank have finished audits of the
failed bank IPB but their estimates of IPB's value differ
markedly, the April 25 edition of Reuters reported.

According to the sources, the banks' estimates differ more than
150 billion crowns ($3.9 billion). CSOB's auditor, CA IB, said
IPB has a negative value at around 150 billion crowns. The
central bank's forced administrator adviser, HSBC, evaluated the
bank as having a positive, though unspecified value.

Both the central bank and CSOB declined to comment.

IPB was put under forced administration in June last year as it
collapsed under a run on deposits. The central bank said IPB
lacked billions of crowns in reserves.


WOOD & COMPANY: To Close Hungary Office
---------------------------------------

Regional securities trading group Wood & Company Ltd. is going to
shut down its Budapest office in Hungary within two months
because of unfavorable market conditions and depressed trading
results, Budapest Business Journal in its April 23 edition said.

According to Wood & Co. founder Richard Wood, they are going to
focus on its Czech and Polish operations and expects the closure
to strengthen its remaining operations.

Besides its local branch, Wood & Co. will also close down its
sales representative office in London.

Last year, the firm closed its office in Kiev, Ukraine, and its
representative office in Istanbul, Turkey last month.


===========
F R A N C E
===========


INTERCALL SA: Court Okays Liberty Surf Bid
------------------------------------------

The Nanterre commercial court in France, which has been
protecting Intercall SA from creditors since it ran into
financial difficulties last November, has given Internet service
provider Liberty Surf the green light to buy the troubled French
telecom group, Reuters in its April 25 edition said.

Liberty Surf's rescue plan includes a capital increase, where
proceeds will go to the ISP.

In May last year, Liberty Surf discussed an alliance with
Intercall, but an agreement was not reached.

Intercall revealed the extent of its financial difficulties after
funding problems triggered a payments dispute with its mobile
supplier Bouygues Telecom. Shares in Intercall have been
suspended since January 4.


MOULINEX SA: To Present Restructuring Plan
------------------------------------------

Home appliance maker Moulinex, which has been hit by fierce Asian
competition as well as distribution problems, is set to present
its long-awaited restructuring plan, Dow Jones in its April 25
report said.

The result of the plan fears unions that it will result in the
closure of three factories and the loss of up to 2,900 jobs.

Last year, the company's former CEO Pierre Blayau first announced
the restructuring plan that called for 2,100 job cuts and the
closure of several production sites.


=============
G E R M A N Y
=============


DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG: Falls Into the Red
--------------------------------------

Car making giant DaimlerChrysler has plunged into the red with a
reported first-quarter loss of 610 million euros, BBC News in its
April 25 edition said.

Chief executive Juergen Schrempp had already predicted that
things would get worse with losses of up to 1 billion euros.

DaimlerChrysler is in the middle of a wide-reaching restructuring
process, aimed at turning the company around. This includes
35,000 job redundancies around the world, mainly in the US and
Japan.

The first quarter results exclude 3.4 billion euros costs for
this restructuring.


DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG: No Deterioration at Mitsubishu
--------------------------------------------------

Mitsubishi Motors Corp, 37.7% owned by DaimlerChrysler AG, is not
experiencing any further deterioration in its business, AFX News
in its April 25 edition said, citing DaimlerChrysler chief
financial officer Manfred Gentz.

"Press reports seem to indicate a further deterioration at
Mitsubishi. This is, as far as we can see, not the case," he
said.

Mitsubishi Motors is scheduled to give the next update, with the
release of its annual report in May.


INTERSHOP COMMUNICATIONS: Seeks Distribution Partners
-----------------------------------------------------

Intershop Communications AG is currently seeking distribution
partners for the troubled software company, AFX News in its April
25 edition said.

According to Intershop chairman Stephan Schambach, he is in talks
with Hewlett Packard Co, Bellsouth Corp and Oracle Corp, which
could takeover Intershop's distribution in the U.S.

This year, Intershop has already issued two profit warnings.


PIXELPARK AG: Bertelsmann Agrees Cash Injection
-----------------------------------------------

Media group Bertelsmann will invest more money in e-services
company Pixelpark in an effort to turn the loss-making business
around, the Financial Times reported yesterday.

Pixelpark declined to confirm the amount of cash injection from
Bertelsmann, but it is believed to be less than DM50 million
($23m).

Last month, Pixelpark announced plans to restructure, which could
involve closing down the company's underperforming overseas
offices.


=============
I R E L A N D
=============


EIRCOM PLC: O'Reilly Remains Mum on Bid
---------------------------------------

Sir Anthony O'Reilly has declined to answer questions about his
involvement in a possible bid for Eircom, The Irish Times
reported yesterday.

The businessman also refused to be drawn on comments from rival
bidder, eIsland chief executive Denis O'Brien, implying the 64-
year-old former Heinz chairman was a little too old to lead a
takeover battle or run Eircom.

However, neither O'Reilly's nor O'Brien's consortium is expected
to make a bid in the short term. Although eIsland has been
examining the situation and talking to Eircom for some months, it
is unlikely to move until the rival consortium's intentions
become clearer.


===================
L U X E M B O U R G
===================


SES ASTRA: Rating Under Review for Possible Downgrade
-----------------------------------------------------

Moody's Investors Service on Wednesday said it had assigned a
first-time Baa1 issuer rating under review for possible downgrade
to the international provider of satellite communications
services, Societe Europeenne des Satellites S.A. (SES Astra).

The review is prompted by SES Astra's recently announced
acquisition of US-based GE American Communications Inc. (GE
Americom) for US$ 2.8 billion in cash and 15.4 million shares of
SES Global S.A (SES Global).

The Baa1 rating for SES Astra reflects the company's position as
a market leader in European broadcast satellite services, strong
barriers to entry to the company's core broadcasting market, a
solid operational track record and good revenue and earnings
visibility.

However, the rating also considers significant risks in the
ordinary course of business for SES Astra from satellite
launches, in orbit operation and related insurance risks as well
as the regulatory and technology risks the company faces, such as
potential disputes over orbital position or competitive pressures
from competing technologies in a fast evolving technological
environment.

The rating also considers SES Astra's dependence on a relatively
small number of large customers and potentially more efficient
competition from soon-to-be-privatized players such as Eutelsat
as well as the relatively early stage of SES Astra's entry into
the highly competitive broadband data distribution markets.

While the initial Baa1 rating already factors in some event risk
given SES Astra's well flagged intention to make an acquisition
in the North American markets, the contemplated Baa2 rating post
completion reflects the significant increase in the SES Global
group's financial indebtedness following the GE Americom
acquisition and the integration risk associated with the
transaction.

However, Moody's also believes that the company's acquisition of
GE Americom, whose asset base is complementary to its own, will
create a geographically balanced, truly global player that is
well positioned to execute SES Astra's strategy of pushing into
broadband and data markets while enjoying relatively secure base
revenue streams from video distribution.

SES Global, the future holding company for SES Astra, was
incorporated in March 2001 and is expected to acquire SES Astra
by way of share exchange later this year. The acquisition of GE
Americom, which is subject to regulatory review, is not expected
to close before the end of the current calendar year. The cash
element of the purchase price will initially be funded from fully
underwritten bank facilities to be made available to SES Global.
The group's existing debt will also be moved to the SES Global
level and the contemplated rating assumes that SES Global will
remain the group's main borrowing vehicle in future.

The GE Americom transaction will considerably weaken SES Global's
balance sheet with debt leverage increasing from 1.4x Debt/EBITDA
to 3.5x on a pro forma basis for the 2000 financial year. The
increased level of borrowings following the acquisition coincides
with peaking capital expenditure requirements for both SES Astra
and GE Americom over the next couple of years.

Moody's also notes that SES Global is contemplating to access the
public equity markets after closing and that management is
committed to improving debt protection measurements over the
medium term. The contemplated Baa2 rating assumes that there will
be no material changes to the terms and conditions of the GE
Americom acquisition, in particular no increase in the cash
component of the purchase price and that there will be no
material departures from the business plan provided to Moody's by
SES Astra.


===========
P O L A N D
===========


ELEKTRIM SA: To Fight Order Blocking Rights
-------------------------------------------

Polish conglomerate Elektrim SA will seek to overturn an
injunction by the Warsaw Regional Court blocking its voting
rights in two key telecom subsidiaries, Dow Jones in its April 25
report said.

The injunction was sought by Dutch firm Eastbridge NV to secure a
$36.9 million claim arising from the lapse of a June 2000 deal in
which Elektrim pledged to acquire 50% stakes in two Internet
firms held by Eastbridge.

Tuesday's decision by the Warsaw court secures Eastbridge's claim
on Elektrim's shares in local fixed-line operator El-Net and
telecom subsidiary Elektrim Telekomunikacja.

Elektrim said the injunction was in violation of Polish civil
procedures and that Eastbridge's demand for compensation on the
abortive deal was groundless, since the original purchase
agreement expired without result on January 20 of this year.


===========
R U S S I A
===========


MEDIA-MOST: Gazprom Unit Withdraws Suit
---------------------------------------

Investment Ltd., a company within Gazprom-Media, which in turn is
a subsidiary of Gazprom, withdrew its April 23 suit filed to the
Moscow Arbitration Court on recovering about $15 million from
Media-MOST, RosBusiness Consulting in its April 25 report said.

Earlier, Media-MOST was to transfer shares of Russkoye Video,
Baikal TV and the 4th channel TV company to TNT television, based
on the agreement signed between Media-MOST and Gazprom.

In the event the shares were not transferred, the media holding
was to repay about $15m in fines to the plaintiff.



=====================
S W I T Z E R L A N D
=====================


ISL WORLDWIDE: FIFA to Refund Tournament Organizers
---------------------------------------------------

World soccer's ruling body FIFA said it would refund as much as
40 million Swiss francs to organizers of the tournament in Japan
and South Korea, if International Sports Media and Marketing
(ISSM)/ ISL  
Worldwide, the company that markets the event, goes bankrupt, the
April 25 edition of Bloomberg reported.

"Japan and Korea's organizing committees won't lose out," FIFA
spokesman Andreas Herren said. "FIFA has formed a company to
market the tournament if ISMM is unable to meet its obligations."

ISMM faces bankruptcy after it failed to generate revenue to
cover the $1.2 billion it agreed to pay in 1999 for a 10-year
television and marketing contract for men's professional tennis.


SAIRGROUP: French Airlines to Lay Off in June
---------------------------------------------

AOM-Air Liberte-Air Littoral will lay off up to 2,700 from a
total of 7,500 employees by mid-June, AFX in its April 25 edition
said.

According to National Union of Airline Pilots (SNPL) president
Jean Immediato, all Air Littoral's 1,200 employees will be laid
off unless a buyer for the airline is found, while 1,500 people
will lose their jobs at AOM-Air Liberte.

Immediato added that an extraordinary meeting of the airlines'
works council would take place next week when the lay-offs will
be announced.


SAIRGROUP: Receives Credit, Changes Name to Swissair
----------------------------------------------------

Mario Corti, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the
SAirGroup, revealed the Group's future strategy, and initial
concrete steps, at the 75th Shareholders' Meeting on Wednesday,
the company's press release said.

The company will again be known as the Swissair Group. Liquidity
has been assured through a new credit line of CHF 1 billion
guaranteed by Citibank, Credit Suisse First Boston and Deutsche
Bank. Plans are also being made for the controlled divestment of
the Group's holdings in French airlines AOM and Air Liberte.

The strong Swissair brand is one of the company's pillars that
Mario Corti plans to build on and, as a result, the company will
henceforth again be known as the Swissair Group. Corti wants the
customer to be the focus of all services provided by the Swissair
Group.

"All of our efforts are aimed at offering customers who board our
aircraft or take advantage of our diverse range of airline-
related products the best service possible," said Corti.

In spite of the relatively small size of the company's home
market, both Swissair and Crossair have created an excellent
reputation based on quality and first-class service. This is a
sound base on which to grow.  

Swissair will maintain a revised version of its dual strategy. In
addition to the cyclical, capital-intensive and highly-regulated
airline business, the promising airline-related activities will
form the second pillar of the corporate strategy. Swissair's
catering, airport retail, ground handling and technical
maintenance subsidiaries are ranked either first or second in
their respective world markets.  

The group structure will be greatly simplified, featuring eight
corporate divisions, each having a CEO reporting directly to
Corti. The eight divisions are formed by Swissair, (headed by
Beat Sch"r); Crossair, (Andre Dose); Airline Partners, (Christoph
Muller); Gate Gourmet, (Henning Boysen); Nuance Group, (Peter
Petersen); Swissport, (Joseph In-Albon); SR Technics, (Hans
Ulrich Beyeler) and Swisscargo, (Klaus Knappik).

In addition to the group CEO and these eight division heads,
Group Executive Management will include two Senior Executive
Officers, Wolfgang Werle and Rolf Winiger, and two Senior
Corporate Officers, Chief Financial Officer Georges Schorderet
and Chief Personnel Officer Matthias M"lleney.  

According to Corti, the group divisions must focus on earning
more than their weighted capital costs. This also applies, medium
term, to the airlines which are currently the only aviation
industry segment that does not meet expectations.  

SAirGroup's capital structure will be adapted to the new
corporate strategy on a step-by-step basis, primarily through
restructuring and simplifying the leasing activities of the
aircraft fleets. Liquidity has been assured through a CHF1
billion credit line guaranteed by Citibank, Credit Suisse First
Boston and Deutsche Bank.

Certain holdings not conforming with the group's core business
activities, namely the Swissotel subsidiary and the
participations in Panalpina and SwissGlobalCargo, have already
been sold.

Efforts are currently underway to sell-off additional, non-
operationally sensitive, real estate holdings.

Preparations are also in progress for the controlled divestment
of the group's holdings in French airlines AOM and Air Liberte.
The airlines' majority shareholder, Taitbout, and the Swissair
Group will ensure the airlines' capital needs until June 30,
2001, allowing them to prepare a restructuring plan.

A decision will have been made by then as to whether a
restructuring plan is acceptable or whether the capital flow is
to be stopped, as happened with Air Littoral on April 2, 2001.

In the first quarter of 2001 the Swissair Group generated an 8.2%
increase in operating revenue over the 2000 figure. The group's
SAirServices (+ 15.8%) and SAirLines (+ 12.1%) divisions made
substantial improvements.


SAIRGROUP: Shareholders Approve Independent Audit
-------------------------------------------------

In a marathon eight hours of active and lively discussion, the
5,286 shareholders who have attended the 2001 SAirGroup Ordinary
Shareholders' Meeting at Zurich Airport on April 25 acknowledged
the group's unsatisfactory 2000 annual results, a company press
release said. Substantial majorities approved various proposals
for a special audit.

Mario Corti, SAirGroup Chairman & CEO, assured shareholders that
the parties charged with the special audit would receive the
company's full support.

Board members Benedict Hentsch, Andres Leuenberger and Lukas
Muhlemann were re-elected to the Board to serve until the
Extraordinary Shareholders' Meeting to be held this autumn.

The 2001 Shareholders' Meeting generated exceptionally strong
interest among both shareholders and the national and
international media. The upheavals surrounding the change of
overall airline strategy and the 2000 annual result, the worst in
the company's history, had prompted thousands of shareholders to
register their intention to attend.  

In the end, of the almost 20,000 responses, only 5286
shareholders reported to the hangar at the SR Technics Zurich
maintenance base where the meeting was held, though this was
still the highest turnout ever.  

A two-to-one majority approved the proposals for the performance
of a special audit, which had been submitted by the Swiss
government, cantons and individual shareholders. As Corti had
said before the meeting, an audit of this kind takes a great deal
of time and effort, and results are unlikely to be available
before the 2002 Ordinary Shareholders' Meeting.

The Board withdrew its own proposal that it be discharged from
its responsibility for the conduct of business in 2000 and
deferred this to the Extraordinary Shareholders' Meeting later in
the year. The meeting approved a proposal from Canton Zurich to
discharge only Chairman Mario Corti from such responsibility. A
substantial majority approved the annual report and accounts.


===========================
U N I T E D   K I N G D O M
===========================


BOOKHAM TECHNOLOGY: Loss Widens to 10.1 Million Pounds
------------------------------------------------------

Fibre-optic component maker Bookham Technology said that its loss
before exceptional items for the three months ended April 1 has
widened to 10.1 million pounds ($14.5 million), from 6.1 million
pounds in the year-earlier period, CNN.com in its April 25
edition said.

The company further said it had cut 166 jobs in the quarter as
part of its reorganization and voluntary reduction scheme.

Bookham took a charge of 1 million pounds to cover the cost of
the redundancy of employees at its southern England manufacturing
facility in Swindon and headquarters in Abingdon.


CAMMELL LAIRD: MP Urges Blair to Help Keep Operation
----------------------------------------------------

Jarrow MP Stephen Hepburn asked Prime Minister Tony Blair to help
ensure the Cammell Laird Holdings PLC shipyards on Tyneside are
not sold to speculators, the April 25 edition of AFX News said.

"It is important, with Cammell Laird's continuing interest in
Ministry of Defense work, that we do everything we can to help
them," Blair said.


CAMMELL LAIRD: Trade Secretary Advises Receivers
------------------------------------------------

Trade and Industry Secretary Stephen Byers has put pressure on
Cammell Laird's receivers, PricewaterhouseCoopers, not to sell
the shipbuilder to potential asset strippers, according to the
April 24 report of The Independent.

Byers, who clashed with Alchemy Partners over its failed proposal
to buy Rover last year, had specifically instructed PwC to
disregard the venture capitalist, thought to be interested in the
shipbuilder.

"It is true to say that Byers has stressed to the receivers that
the company should be sold as a going concern," a spokesman for
the DTI said.


EDGBASTON GROUP: Goes Into Receivership
---------------------------------------

Engineering company Edgbaston Group has on Monday called in KPMG
at Birmingham as its administrative receivers, the Birmingham
Post in its April 25 edition said.

The group, which has sold off several of its divisions in recent
years, has now left with just two companies, Bailey Peerless and
Plasmatic.

A spokesman for KPMG said that both businesses were continuing to
trade and hopes were high of selling them as going concerns.

Several parties are interested in acquiring both divisions.


MARKS & SPENCER: Unions Call for Protest in London
--------------------------------------------------

Unions representing Marks & Spencer workers in several European
countries are calling for a demonstration in London on May 17
against the closing down of all of the company's shops in
continental Europe, the April 25 edition of AFX News said.

The unions do not accept the management's decision to close the
shops and request that M&S reverse the decision.

"We also firmly criticize Marks & Spencer's refusal to hold talks
on an European level," Union Network International head Jan
Furstendurg said.


RAILTRACK GROUP: Appoints New Finance Director
----------------------------------------------

Cash-strapped Railtrack has appointed David Harding, who is
currently finance director of building materials company Rugby
Group, as the new finance director, the April 25 edition of
Birmingham Post said.

Two other new members are joining its board. Railtrack's acting
finance director, Sebastian Bull, joins the board as business
development director, while recently retired National Grid Group
chief executive David Jones as non-executive director.



      S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter -- Europe is a daily newsletter co-
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USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, DC USA. Kimberly MacAdam,
Salve M. Mordeno and Cristina Pernites, Editors.

Copyright 2001.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2754.

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