/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR

/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/050808.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 Monday, August 8, 2005, Vol. 6, No. 155 Headlines F R A N C E DELOS SA: Green Recovery Rescues Troubled Railway Builder G E R M A N Y AGROTECH GMBH: Creditors' Claims Due Later this Month BOTTGER GFK: Proofs of Claim Due Next Week BSL SPEDITION: Creditors Meeting Set September CAATOOSEE GROUP: Credits Restructuring for Swift Turnaround CRS CATERING: Under Bankruptcy Administration DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG: Execs Exercise Stock Options Amid Probe DER 99 CENT: Court Appoints Dr. Ahrendt Administrator DIRK ROSGEN: Court to Verify Claims October EKS-GROUP: Gera Court Calls in Administrator FMK VERMIETUNGS: Creditors to Meet Next Month FRITZ NEICHEL: Court to Verify Claims December INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES: Future of Memory Chips Unit Uncertain INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES: Realigns R&D Unit INFINEON TECHNOLOGY: Munich Plant Closure Final INFRATECH VERTRIEBS: Falls into Bankruptcy MEDIGENE AG: Doubles First-half Net Loss SPEZIALITATEN HARTMANN: Looks Sweeter to Rivals than Customers SPIEL + FREIZEIT: Remaining Stores Sold to Alpina H U N G A R Y PANNONPLAST RT: Pulls out of Pannonpipe I T A L Y PARMALAT FINANZIARIA: Police Nab Former BofA Exec N E T H E R L A N D S ROYAL SHELL: Appoints New Non-executive Chairman VENDEX KBB: Fitch Affirms 'BB-' Rating VERSATEL TELECOM: Books Second-quarter Earnings of EUR1.8 Mln P O L A N D POLISH OIL: Banks Grant EUR900 Mln Loan as IPO Fizzles out R O M A N I A ROMANIAI MAGYAR: Local Daily Runs out of Paper R U S S I A KALUZHSKIY MACADAM: Declared Insolvent KOMI-MAZ-SERVICE: Insolvency Manager Takes over Firm NIZHNEVARTOVSKIY: Proofs of Claim Deadline Expires Next Month PRILUZ-WOOD: Bankruptcy Proceedings Begin ROSLAVL-LES: Undergoes Bankruptcy Supervision Procedure SEMENOVSKAYA MANUFACTURE: Bankruptcy Hearing Set October SEROVSKIY: Calls in Insolvency Manager SMNU OMSK-VODA-AUTOMATICS: Declared Insolvent SOCHI REPAIR-EXPLOITATION: Succumbs to Bankruptcy ZHIRNOVSK-MEZH-RAY-GAS: Under Bankruptcy Supervision S P A I N RED ELITE: Files for Administration to Prevent Liquidation S W I T Z E R L A N D ABB LTD.: To Delist from Frankfurt, London Stock Exchanges U N I T E D K I N G D O M ABBEY SAFETY: In Voluntary Liquidation ASL TECHNICAL: Creditors to Name Liquidator BEAULITE LIMITED: Calls in Joint Liquidators BLD STORES: Hires Administrators from Begbies Traynor BLUESTREAM UK: Members Decide to Liquidate Firm C J VANDER: Administrators from PKF Take over Operation COLERAINE F.C.: Court Adjourns Bankruptcy Hearing CONTRACT FLOORS.COM: Administrators Enter Firm CORK INTERNATIONAL: Calls in Joint Liquidators COROLLA LIMITED: Falls into Liquidation CORUS GROUP: Names Siemens' Italian Unit as Supplier CPS CIVIL: Calls in Wilson Field Administrator CRIMWAY LIMITED: Lighting Maker Hires Administrators CUZEN & MILNE: Creditors Meeting Set this Week C & X FASHIONS: Nominates Liquidator EUJET: Court Appoints Examiner to Save Jobs EUROPEAN INTERIOR: In Voluntary Liquidation F B DELL: Calls in Liquidator from Poppleton & Appleby FLEXIBREAKS LIMITED: Names Antony Batty Liquidator GAIM UK: Owners Opt for Administration GULF INTERMODAL: Calls in Administrators from Begbies Traynor INFO-BUIS SOLUTIONS: Calls in Liquidator INTERNATIONAL POWER: S&P Revises Outlook to Stable INTERNATIONAL SILVER: Names PKF Administrator JARVIS PLC: Has New Chief Operating Officer JUST CONSTRUCTION: Calls in Liquidator KLAUSSNER FURNITURE: Furniture Manufacturer Calls Administrator MADISONS ESTATE: Goes into Liquidation MDM LINCS: EGM Passes Winding-up Resolutions MEPC LIMITED: Moody's Downgrades Unsecured Bonds to B2 MERLIN ADHESIVE: Administrators from BWC Business Move in MG ROVER: Union Angry Over Phoenix Four's 'Lowered' Pledge MISYS PLC: Inks Partnership with Danish Bank NETWORK CENTRIC: Calls in Valentine to Liquidate Biz NORTHSEC GUARDING: High Court Orders Winding-up NOVUS FOODS: Calls in Administrators from Baker Tilly OBSERVANT ELECTRONICS: Fanshawe Lofts Administrators Enter Firm PACKAGING LIMITED: Members Pass Winding-up Resolutions P & P DESIGNS: Heads into Liquidation READCO 300: Hires PricewaterhouseCoopers Administrator RENAISSANCE INTERNATIONAL: Calls in Administrator ROBERTS & BELK: Appoints Administrators from PKF S A CORPORATION: Winding up Gets Court Approval SMART CREATIONS: Members Pass Winding-up Resolution SOUTHERN CONSTRUCTION: Court Okays Liquidation SPECIALIST INSTALLATIONS: Liquidation Receives Go Signal S P ETAIL: Appoints Liquidators from PKF STORE 4 LIMITED: In Liquidation SUNHAND LIMITED: Winding-up Gets Green Light SWINTON TANNING: Calls in Liquidator THOMAS CORK: Names Begbies Liquidator TIME-TEES CARS: Liquidators from Tenon Recovery Move in TITHERINGTONS LIMITED: Appoints Grant Thornton Liquidator T & L BULK: In Voluntary Liquidation UNIMET LLC: Gears up for Liquidation WEST COUNTRY: Calls in Liquidators from Begbies ********* =========== F R A N C E =========== DELOS SA: Green Recovery Rescues Troubled Railway Builder --------------------------------------------------------- Railway subcontractor Delos S.A. has been taken over by Green Recovery, a restructuring specialist, Les Echos says. The Valenciennes commercial court approved the sale after Delos' employee representatives agreed to the takeover. Green Recovery has offered to retain 41 of 71 employees. Delos, which has been undergoing composition proceedings since April, will be headed by Bernard Grouchko once the takeover is complete. He aims to achieve EUR7.2 million in turnover for 2005-2006 and EUR8 million the next year. Delos posted EUR7.7 million in turnover for the extended year 2004 (15 months) and has a sizeable backlog of orders. Founded in 1930, Delos subcontracts for railway tankers material and specializes in mechanical and welded constructions. It also engages in industrial plant equipment construction. CONTACT: DELOS S.A. 129, Route de Lille B.P. 138 59733 Saint Amand Cedex Phone: +33 (0) 3 27 48 49 15 Fax +33 (0) 3 27 48 21 49 E-mail: contact@delos-fr.com Web site: http://www.delos-fr.com ============= G E R M A N Y ============= AGROTECH GMBH: Creditors' Claims Due Later this Month ----------------------------------------------------- The district court of Leipzig opened bankruptcy proceedings against Agrotech GmbH on July 14. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until August 22, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Michael Hawelka. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on September 22, 2005, 1:30 p.m. at the district court of Leipzig, Saal 145, at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: AGROTECH GmbH Contact: Frank Albrecht, Manager Leipziger Str. 53, 04519 Rackwitz Michael Hawelka, Administrator Nonnenstr. 37, 04229 Leipzig BOTTGER GFK: Proofs of Claim Due Next Week ------------------------------------------ The district court of Hamburg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Bottger GFK-Anlagenbau GmbH on July 14. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until August 12, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Christoph Henningsmeier. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on September 13, 2005, 12:00 noon at the district court of Hamburg, Insolvenzgericht, Weidestrasse 122d, 22083 Hamburg, Saal 1, 2. Ebene (Zi. 2.18), at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: BOTTGER GFK-ANLAGENBAU GmbH Schleemer Weg 14, 22117 Hamburg Contact: Ingrid Bottger, Manager Christoph Henningsmeier, Administrator Osdorfer Landstrasse 230, 22549 Hamburg Phone: 8078810 BSL SPEDITION: Creditors Meeting Set September ---------------------------------------------- The district court of Bielefeld opened bankruptcy proceedings against BSL Spedition & Logistik Bielefeld GmbH on July 14. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until September 8, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Klaus Knetter. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on September 23, 2005, 9:30 a.m. at the district court of Bielefeld, Gerichtstrasse 6, 33602 Bielefeld, 4. Ebene, Saal 4065, at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: BSL SPEDITION & LOGISTIK BIELEFELD GmbH Otto-Brenner-Str. 207 - 209, 33604 Bielefeld Contact: Franz-Josef Matysiak, Manager Wasserfuhr 55, 33619 Bielefeld Klaus Knetter, Administrator Otto-Brenner-Str. 186, 33604 Bielefeld CAATOOSEE GROUP: Credits Restructuring for Swift Turnaround ----------------------------------------------------------- In the 2004/2005 financial year just ended, on declining revenues, caatoosee generated an operating profit and a modest consolidated profit before taxes. With the capital measures that have since been implemented, the turnaround has been successfully completed, and the Company once again faces a positive future. For the caatoosee Group the past financial year (April 2004 to March 2005) was a period of transition following the implementation of restructuring measures. The focus was on the ongoing implementation of measures designed to achieve a significant improvement in the earnings situation after several years of large losses. Within this context caatoosee had to accept a decline in revenues. A strategic change involving a reduction in Software activities and a change in the orientation of Outsourcing and IT Services has put the Company on a profitable footing for the future. With caatoosee Schweiz AG no longer included in the consolidated group in the financial year, caatoosee's revenues fell by 16 percent to EUR21.6 million [Previous Year (PY) EUR25.8 million]. The operating profit before depreciation and amortization of intangible and tangible fixed assets (EBITDA) and expenditure relating to restructuring measures was EUR3.6 million (PY: loss of EUR3.9 million). An EBIT of EUR0.7 million also illustrates the turnaround in earnings compared to the previous year (loss of EUR23.9 million), where the figure for the 2004/2005 financial year contain restructuring expenses of EUR1.4 million and ongoing depreciation and amortization of EUR1.5 million, as well as income arising on deconsolidation of EUR1.6 million. Following a financial result of minus EUR0.3 million, which was impacted by exchange rate losses, the consolidated profit before taxes was EUR0.3 million (PY: loss of EUR24.6 million). The consolidated loss of EUR0.3 million (PY loss of EUR24.8 million) resulted in a loss per share figure of EUR0.02 (PY: loss of EUR1.40 per share). At the end of the reporting year, the Company had total assets of EUR21.5 million and shareholders' equity of EUR1.2 million. This corresponds to an equity ratio of 5 percent, compared to 10 percent the previous year. As of March 31, 2005, financial liabilities totaled EUR2.1 million. The number of people employed fell from 459 the previous year to 304 as of March 31, 2005. With the capital measures that have since been implemented, caatoosee has transformed itself into a provider for IT Outsourcing and Services and concluded the turnaround. The core elements were the contributions in kind of TeraPort GmbH by the M+W Zander Group and OuterBounds Technologies Inc. Together with the cash capital increase of EUR5 million, these measures significantly reinforced shareholders' equity and the Company's financial situation. The Annual General Meeting for the 2004/2005 financial year will be held on September 6, 2005. Management Board CONTACT: CAATOOSEE AG Riedwiesenstrasse 1 d-71229 Leonberg Phone: +49 (0)7152.355.6000 Fax: +49 (0)7152.355.6650 E-mail: info@caatoosee.com Web site: http://www.caatoosee.com CRS CATERING: Under Bankruptcy Administration --------------------------------------------- The district court of Darmstadt opened bankruptcy proceedings against CRS Catering und Restaurant Service GmbH on July 11. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until August 18, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Ulrich Hassinger. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on September 29, 2005, 9:15 a.m. at the district court of Darmstadt, Zimmer 108, Gebaude E, Landwehrstrasse 48, 64293 Darmstadt, at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: CRS CATERING UND RESTAURANT SERVICE GmbH Im Duerren Kopf 38, 64347 Griesheim Contact: Joachim Heinz Gutberlet, Manager Jahnstrasse 37, 63814 Mainaschaff Ulrich Hassinger, Administrator Marktplatz 12, 64283 Darmstadt Phone: 06151/81760 Fax: 06151/851435 DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG: Execs Exercise Stock Options Amid Probe ----------------------------------------------------------- Analysts are brushing aside rumors of dissent at DaimlerChrysler AG after several executives took up their stock options. They stressed the executives were just taking advantage as shares rose following the disclosure of Juergen Schrempp's exit, the Associated Press says. The company disclosed recently that six executives had exercised their options to buy shares and then sold about 135,000 shares between July 29 and August 1. The company identified them as Thomas W. Sidlik, who bought 50,000 shares at EUR34.40 each and sold them at EUR40.52, gaining EUR306,000; and Smart GmbH president Ulrich Walker, who acquired 20,000 shares at the same price and sold them for EUR40.04 apiece, earning an extra EUR112,800. The other executives were Harald Boelstler, the CEO of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus Corp.; Herbert Kauffman and Wolfgang Dietz, of DaimlerChrysler's commercial vehicles division; and Guenter Egle, of the Mercedes unit. DaimlerChrysler refused to comment on the move, nor provided details regarding the total options held by the executives. Shares opened around EUR36.50 (US$44.59) on July 28, but started to rise following reports that Mr. Schrempp was resigning. They closed at EUR39.49 after Mr. Schrempp's exit was officially announced. Earlier, Berlin-based financial services regulator BaFin launched an investigation into alleged insider trading at DaimlerChrysler. The probe centered on deals prior to Mr. Schrempp's departure. It is not, however, limited to particular people or trades, noted Sabine Reimer, a spokeswoman for BaFin. She added they are looking into all the deals, checking whether the company followed the guidelines under the stock exchange disclosure requirements, or ad hoc rules. The company has appointed Dieter Zetsche, 52, who led the recovery of the Chrysler division, to replace Mr. Schrempp. It has also reportedly started searching for a new chief for its Mercedes business after Eckhard Cordes offered to resign. His decision comes after Mr. Zetsche's appointment as head of DaimlerChrysler. For a long time, Mr. Cordes had been viewed as Mr. Schremmp's successor, but apparently that is not the case now. Many are now speculating whether or not Mr. Schremmp's departure was voluntary. CONTACT: DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG 70546 Stuttgart, Germany Phone: +49 711 17 0 Fax: +49 711 17 22244 Web site: http://www.daimlerchrysler.com DER 99 CENT: Court Appoints Dr. Ahrendt Administrator ----------------------------------------------------- The district court of Hamburg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Der 99 Cent Markt Handelsgesellschaft mbH on July 11. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until September 2, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Dr. Achim Ahrendt. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on October 10, 2005, 9:30 a.m. at the district court of Hamburg, Insolvenzgericht, Weidestrasse 122d, 22083 Hamburg, Saal 1, 2. Ebene (Zi. 2.18), at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: DER 99 CENT MARKT HANDELSGESELLSCHAFT mbH Bargkoppelweg 3, 22145 Hamburg Contact: Rolf Wagner, Manager Elfenbeinweg 16, 22391 Hamburg Dr. Achim Ahrendt, Administrator Albert-Einstein-Ring 11/15, 22761 Hamburg Phone: 899560 Fax: 8995610 DIRK ROSGEN: Court to Verify Claims October ------------------------------------------- The district court of Essen opened bankruptcy proceedings against Dirk Rosgen GmbH on July 15. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until September 19, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Joseph Albers. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on October 10, 2005, 9:00 a.m. at the district court of Essen, Hauptstelle, Zweigertstr. 52, 45130 Essen, 2. OG, gelber Bereich, Saal 293, at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: DIRK ROSGEN GmbH Auf dem Schollbruch 32a, 45899 Gelsenkirchen Contact: Dirk Rosgen, Manager Joseph Albers, Administrator Von-der-Recke-Str. 5-7, 45879 Gelsenkirchen Phone: 0209/179890 Fax: +492091485096 EKS-GROUP: Gera Court Calls in Administrator -------------------------------------------- The district court of Gera opened bankruptcy proceedings against EKS-Group Elektroanlagen Kassentisch Service GmbH on July 12. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until August 12, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Klaus Siemon. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on September 13, 2005, 2:15 p.m. at the district court of Gera, Rudolf-Diener-Str. 1, Zimmer 301, at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: EKS-GROUP ELEKTROANLAGEN KASSENTISCH SERVICE GmbH Contact: Bernd Gunnemann, Manager Am Kemnitzgrund 8, 04626 Schmolln Klaus Siemon, Administrator Str. d. Nationen 51, 09111 Chemnitz FMK VERMIETUNGS: Creditors to Meet Next Month --------------------------------------------- The district court of Chemnitz opened bankruptcy proceedings against FMK Vermietungs- und Immobilien-Service GmbH on July 11. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until August 17, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Carsten Morgenstern. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on September 28, 2005, 9:45 a.m. at the district court of Chemnitz, Saal 28, im Gerichtsgebaude Fuerstenstrasse 21, in Chemnitz, at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: FMK VERMIETUNGS- UND IMMOBILIEN-SERVICE GmbH Webergasse 3, 09111 Chemnitz Contact: Heinz Klotzner, Manager Gabriele Siebert-Mayer, Manager Carsten Morgenstern, Administrator Michaelstr. 71, 09116 Chemnitz FRITZ NEICHEL: Court to Verify Claims December ---------------------------------------------- The district court of Charlottenburg opened bankruptcy proceedings against Fritz Neichel GmbH on July 13. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors have until October 12, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Dr. Dirk Wittkowski. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on August 30, 2005, 9:15 a.m. at the district court of Charlottenburg, Amtsgerichtsplatz 1, 14057 Berlin, II. Stock Saal 218, at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report on December 6, 2005, 9:25 a.m. at the same venue. CONTACT: FRITZ NEICHEL GmbH Zwinglistrasse 38, 10555 Berlin Dr. Dirk Wittkowski, Administrator Kirchblick 11, 14129 Berlin INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES: Future of Memory Chips Unit Uncertain ------------------------------------------------------------ Troubled chipmaker Infineon Technologies is looking for ways to boost its loss-making memory chips business following the resignation of its division head, Suddeutsche Zeitung says. Currently in need of financing, the resignation of Andreas von Zitzewitz has rendered a flotation impossible. Thus, Infineon is left with no other choice but to hold exploratory talks with possible investors, sources close to the group's supervisory board told the paper. They say Infineon is mulling putting the division into a joint venture with Taiwanese group Nanya. The two already co-own memory chips maker Inotera in Taiwan. An Infineon spokesman, however, refused to comment on the matter, dismissing them as speculations. Influential personalities within Infineon favor either flotation, sale or partnership. Staff representatives sitting on the supervisory board don't want to see Infineon split into several units. CONTACT: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG P.O. Box 80 09 49 D-81609 Muenchen Phone: +49-89-234-28481 Fax: +49-89-234-28482 E-mail: guenter.gaugler@infineon.com Web site: http://www.infineon.com For Investors and Analysts based in Europe: Phone: +49-89-234 26655 E-mail: investor.relations@infineon.com For Investors and Analysts based in North America: Phone: +-1-408 501 6800 E-mail: investor.relations@infineon.com Christoph Liedtke U.S.A. Phone: +1-408 501-6790 Fax: +1-408 501-2424 E-mail: christoph.liedtke@infineon.com Kaye Lim Asia Phone: +65-6840-0689 Fax: +65-6840-0073 E-mail: kaye.lim@infineon.com Hirotaka Shiroguchi Japan Phone: +81-3-5449-6795 Fax: +81-3-5449-6401 E-mail: hirotaka.shiroguchi@infineon.com INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES: Realigns R&D Unit ---------------------------------------- Loss-making chipmaker Infineon Technologies is reorganizing its research and development activities, Borsen Zeitung says. According to the daily, the semiconductor group will integrate the currently independent unit into its operating divisions -- Automotive, Industrial and Multimarket, Communications and Memory Products. Infineon is currently hounded by a bribery scandal that threatens to stymie its recovery. The group has already sold several businesses to refocus on core activities. Founded in 1999, Infineon employs around 36,000 employees worldwide, 7,200 of whom are involved in research and development. In fiscal year 2004, the group achieved EUR7.19 billion in sales and EUR61 million in consolidated surplus. It operates through subsidiaries in San Jose, California in the U.S.; Singapore, and Tokyo in Japan. Infineon is listed on the DAX 30 index of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and on the New York Stock Exchange (IFX). CONTACT: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG P.O. Box 80 09 49 D-81609 Muenchen Phone: +49-89-234-0 Fax: +49-89-234-2-84-82 Web site: http://www.infineon.com Gunter Gaugler Media Relations Contact Phone: +49-89-234-28481 Fax: +49-89-234-28482 E-mail: guenter.gaugler@infineon.com Christoph Liedtke, U.S.A. Phone: +1-408-501 6790 Fax: +1-408-501 2424 E-mail: christoph.liedtke@infineon.com Kaye Lim, Asia Phone: +65-6876 -3070 Fax: +65-6876-3074 E-mail: kaye.lim@infineon.com Hirotaka Shiroguchi, Japan Phone: +81-3-5449-6795 Fax: +81-3-5449-6401 E-mail: hirotaka.shiroguchi@infineon.com Investors Relations, Europe Phone: +49-89-234 26655 Phone: investor.relations@infineon.com Investors Relations, North America Phone: +-1-408 501 6800 E-mail: investor.relations@infineon.com INFINEON TECHNOLOGY: Munich Plant Closure Final ----------------------------------------------- Infineon remains firm in shutting down its Munich site, Heise Online says. The management board told employees Friday the decision to close the Munich Perlach plant is final. Unions expressed readiness to fight the closure with "all means at its disposal," according to Werner Neugebauer, head of the Bavarian unit of IG Metall. "We shall do everything to save the jobs at the Perlach plant. The gentlemen of Infineon's board of management had thus better prepare for stormy days ahead." Back in February, Infineon announced it would phase out the site in 2007, citing unsuitability of the plant to its manufacturing needs, adding site production capacity was not feasible from an economic and technological standpoint. Munich Perlach only uses 150 mm silicon wafers technology, which no longer corresponds to technical or economic standards. Infineon said that, as the manufacturing standard for logic products corresponds to 200 mm wafer, the cost disadvantage of manufacturing 150 mm is considerable and will continue to increase. Infineon plans to transfer most of the production to Regensburg and the rest to Villach. The group currently employs around 800 at these sites. Infineon is currently hounded by a bribery scandal involving the former head of its memory chips division. Founded in 1999, Infineon Technologies employs around 36,000 employees worldwide, 7,200 of whom are involved in research and development. In fiscal year 2004, the group achieved EUR7.19 billion in sales and EUR61 million in consolidated surplus. CONTACT: INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG P.O. Box 80 09 49 D-81609 Muenchen Phone: +49-89-234-0 Fax: +49-89-234-2-84-82 Web site: http://www.infineon.com Gunter Gaugler Media Relations Contact Phone: +49-89-234-28481 Fax: +49-89-234-28482 E-mail: guenter.gaugler@infineon.com Christoph Liedtke, U.S.A. Phone: +1-408-501 6790 Fax: +1-408-501 2424 E-mail: christoph.liedtke@infineon.com Kaye Lim, Asia Phone: +65-6876 -3070 Fax: +65-6876-3074 E-mail: kaye.lim@infineon.com Hirotaka Shiroguchi, Japan Phone: +81-3-5449-6795 Fax: +81-3-5449-6401 E-mail: hirotaka.shiroguchi@infineon.com Investors Relations, Europe Phone: +49-89-234 26655 Phone: investor.relations@infineon.com Investors Relations, North America Phone: +-1-408 501 6800 E-mail: investor.relations@infineon.com INFRATECH VERTRIEBS: Falls into Bankruptcy ------------------------------------------ The district court of Hamburg opened bankruptcy proceedings against INFRATECH Vertriebs GmbH on July 11. Consequently, all pending proceedings against the company have been automatically stayed. Creditors had until August 5, 2005 to register their claims with court-appointed provisional administrator Kerstin Gruettner. Creditors and other interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting on September 2, 2005, 9:00 a.m. at the district court of Hamburg, Insolvenzgericht, Weidestrasse 122d, 22083 Hamburg, Saal 1, 2. Ebene (Zi. 2.18), at which time the administrator will present his first report of the insolvency proceedings. The court will also verify the claims set out in the administrator's report during this meeting, while creditors may constitute a creditors committee and or opt to appoint a new insolvency manager. CONTACT: INFRATECH VERTRIEBS GmbH i.L. Wedeler Landstrasse 93, 22559 Hamburg Contact: Karl-Heinz Stryi, Manager Rissener Dorfstrasse 37, 22559 Hamburg Kerstin Gruettner, Administrator MEDIGENE AG: Doubles First-half Net Loss ---------------------------------------- The German-American biotech company MediGene AG (Frankfurt, Prime Standard: MDG) presents results for the first six months of 2005 that conform to the company's expectations, and confirms its forecast for the financial year. Total revenues in the first six months of the year amounted to EUR4,942,000 (H1-2004: EUR8,830,000), and to EUR1,118,000 in the second quarter of 2005 (Q2-2004: EUR4,920,000). These revenues were generated almost solely by the commercialization of the first drug, and are made up of proceeds from product sales, license fees and milestone payments received from MediGene's marketing partner Astellas Pharma Europe Ltd. The increased revenues in the second quarter and in the first six months of 2004 resulted from advance and milestone payments due upon conclusion of the marketing partnership for the first drug. Consequently, the gross profit decreased to EUR3,666,000 in the first six months of the year, and to EUR214,000 in the second quarter. Gross profit margin is determined by milestone payments and the ratio of revenues from product sales to license payments, and is therefore subject to substantial fluctuations comparing individual reporting periods. The increase of general, administrative, and selling expenses to EUR3,048,000 (H1-2004: EUR2,879,000), and to EUR1,634,000 (Q2-2004: EUR1,481,000), respectively, is mainly due to the first-time adoption of IFRS, according to which stock options issued to employees are now recognized as expenses of EUR171,000 in the first six months of 2005. Total R&D expenses increased to EUR7,558,000 (H1-2004: EUR6,820,000), and to EUR4,260,000 (Q2-2004: EUR3,025,000), respectively. This increase was mainly due to the EndoTAG program acquired in August 2004. Compared to last year's reporting periods, the net loss increased to -EUR6,326,000 (H1-2004: -EUR4,195,000), and to -EUR5,378,000 (Q2-2004: -EUR2,692,000), respectively, since last year the company received higher milestone payments. Outlook: MediGene confirms the forecast for the year 2005, according to which the company expects to raise revenues to approximately EUR20 million, and to reduce the loss below EUR10 million. Major milestones to be reached are the NDA submission for the Polyphenon E Ointment against genital warts to the U.S. regulatory authority, the conclusion of a marketing partnership for the Polyphenon E Ointment, the initiation of a clinical phase II trial of the drug candidate EndoTAG-1, as well as the launch of the first drug in other European countries. Alexander Dexne, MediGene's Chief Financial Officer, comments: "In the second half of 2005 we expect a significant increase in revenues and a considerable improvement of our financial result. The launch of our first drug in other European countries and the conclusion of a marketing partnership for our Polyphenon E Ointment will form the basis for this improvement. Although the results obtained in the trial in the indication actinic keratosis did not meet our expectations, we assume that the NDA for our Polyphenon E Ointment will be submitted to the U.S. regulatory authority as scheduled, and that we will conclude a marketing partnership for this product." CONTACT: MEDIGENE AG Lochhamer Str. 11 82152 Martinsried Phone: ++49-89-85 65-29 00 Fax: ++49-89-85 65-29 20 Web site: http://www.medigene.com SPEZIALITATEN HARTMANN: Looks Sweeter to Rivals than Customers -------------------------------------------------------------- Potential investors are now salivating on confectionery maker Spezialitaten Hartmann, local daily Die Welt says. The company, which declared insolvency at the end of July, has attracted Zentis, Dr. Quendt and Halloren. Frontrunner Zentis is reportedly eyeing the 'Nudossi' brand, which will cement its leading position on the market for nut nougat products. Dr. Quendt, eastern Germany's largest baked goods producer, is also after 'Nudossi', but, more than anything, it wants Hartmann to remain in eastern Germany. The bidder refused to say what phase of the talks they are in now. CONTACT: SACHSISCHE SPEZIALITATEN HARTMANN KARL-HEINZ UND THOMAS HARTMANN GBR Fabrikstrasse 4, 01445 Radebeul Phone: +49 351 837520 Fax: +49 351 8375225 E-mail: spezialitaeten.hartmann@t-online.de Web site: http://www.vadossi.de FRANZ ZENTIS GmbH & CO. KG Julicher Strasse 177 D - 52070 Aachen Phone: +49 (0) 241/4760-0 Fax +49 (0) 241/4760-369 Web site: http://www.zentis.com DR. QUENDT BACKWAREN GmbH Offenburger Str. 1 D-01189 Dresden Phone: +49 - (0)351 - 43616 - 0 Fax: +49 - (0)351 - 43616 - 17 Web site: http://www.dr-quendt.de HALLOREN SCHOKOLADENFABRIK GmbH Delitzscher Strasse 70 06112 Halle Phone: 0345/5642-0 Fax: 0345/5642-250 Web site: http://www.halloren.de SPIEL + FREIZEIT: Remaining Stores Sold to Alpina ------------------------------------------------- The parent of loss making toy retailer Spiel + Freizeit Handelsbetriebe has reached a deal with investment firm Alpina Beteiligungsgesellschaft, Suddeutsche Zeitung says. Inked on July 29, the deal transfers Vedes AG's ownership of Spiel's remaining stores to Alpina for an undisclosed price. Less than a month prior to this sale, Vedes also sold Spiel's stores in Stuttgart, Munich and Leonberg to Mercari on July 1, 2005. Vedes says the sale presents the best chance to keep jobs and maintain Spiel's turnover. Spiel currently operates 16 shops across the country. Vedes plans to concentrate on toy wholesaling from here on. CONTACT: SPIEL + FREIZEIT HANDELSBETRIEBE GMBH Concordiastrasse 32 46049 Oberhausen Phone: 0208-803534 VEDES AG Beuthener Strasse 43 D - 90471 Nuernberg Phone: +49 911 6556 0 Fax: +49 911 6556 251 E-mail: info@vedes.com Web site: http://www.vedes-ag.com ============= H U N G A R Y ============= PANNONPLAST RT: Pulls out of Pannonpipe --------------------------------------- Loss-making plastic manufacturer Pannonplast Rt has sold its 50% stake in subsidiary Pannonpipe Kft to co-owner Pipelife International GmbH, Budapest Business Journal says. In a stock exchange statement Thursday, Pannonplast said the sale would allow it to focus on its consumer packaging business and slash its debt by HUF2.8 billion. Pannonplast and Pipelife have jointly owned Pannonpipe since 1990, splitting their stakes equally. Pannonpipe manufactures pipes for plumbing and construction works. Pannonplast Rt. reported its third straight losses in 2004 due to dropping demand for its products in the sluggish western European market. Although 2004 revenues amounted to HUF26.5 billion, the company still booked losses of HUF1.8 billion. The company manufactures a wide range of plastic finished products, including sewage and hot/cold water pressure pipes and fittings, mid-voltage insulators, plastic technical components and other products for industries and households. CONTACT: PANNONPLAST MUANYAGIPARI RT. Nagytetenyi ut 216-218 1225 Budapest, Phone: +36 1 207 1936 Fax: +36 1 207 1525 Web site: http://www.pannonplast.hu PANNONPIPE MUANYAGIPARI KFT. H-1751 Budapest P.O.B. 117 Phone: (36-52)-521-845 Fax: (36-52)-510-396 Web site: http://www.pannonpipe.hu ========= I T A L Y ========= PARMALAT FINANZIARIA: Police Nab Former BofA Exec ------------------------------------------------- Local police arrested last week a former Bank of America (BofA) manager who allegedly abetted Parmalat Finanziaria's fraudulent bond issuance, La Stampa says. Police arrested Luca Sala at his wife's villa in Forte dei Marmi, a resort on Italy's west coast. Mr. Sala acted as consultant to Parmalat in his capacity as corporate banking head of BofA's Italian unit. He allegedly hid the true state of Parmalat's finances in organizing private placement of bonds with institutional investors, mostly from the U.S. He also allegedly tried to hide the losses of the Brazilian unit and gained tens of thousands of dollars for it. He allegedly deposited the money in Switzerland. The Parma prosecutor's office placed Mr. Sala on the wanted list in March after Guardia di Finanza, the local tax and finance police, discovered EUR4 million in cash and shares deposited in current accounts in three different trust companies in Turin. A source said the court ordered his arrest to prevent him from tampering with evidence. CONTACT: PARMALAT FINANZIARIA S.p.A. Legal Seat 43044 Collecchio (Pr) Via Oreste Grassi, 26 Administrative Seat 20122 Milan Piazza Erculea, 9 Phone: +39 02 806 8801 Fax: +39 02 869 3863 Web site: http://www.parmalat.net ===================== N E T H E R L A N D S ===================== ROYAL SHELL: Appoints New Non-executive Chairman ------------------------------------------------ The Board of Directors of Royal Dutch Shell plc has appointed Jorma Ollila, currently Chairman and CEO of Nokia, to succeed Aad Jacobs as the company's Non-executive Chairman. The appointment will be effective from June 1, 2006. Mr. Ollila joined Nokia in 1985 and took the helm in 1992. As Nokia CEO he presented an ambitious strategy that successfully restructured the former industrial conglomerate and, along with his team, accelerated its growth into one of the most successful companies in both the mobile phone and telecommunications infrastructure markets. Mr. Ollila will step down as CEO at Nokia on June 1, 2006. Jorma Ollila's initial career prior to Nokia was in banking at Citibank in London and Helsinki. He also has extensive experience as a non-executive director, including currently with the Ford Motor Company. Lord Kerr of Kinlochard, Shell Deputy Chairman and Senior Independent Director who led the Search Committee, said: "We were looking world-wide for a Chairman with international standing, a global outlook, and proven success in managing a complex organization. In Jorma Ollila we found all these qualities, and more." Jeroen van der Veer, Shell Chief Executive said: "Jorma Ollila will be an excellent Chairman. He comes to us with a wealth of valuable experience and an excellent record of success. We are sure that we have found the best person for the job." Mr. Ollila said: "I look forward to working closely with Jeroen van der Veer and the Royal Dutch Shell Board. This is a wonderful opportunity with a great global company at a pivotal time for the energy industry. I look forward to being part of the team in The Hague." * * * Royal Dutch Shell plc is incorporated in England and Wales, has its headquarters in The Hague and is listed on the London, Amsterdam, and New York stock exchanges. Shell companies have operations in more than 145 countries with businesses including oil and gas exploration and production; production and marketing of Liquefied Natural Gas and Gas to Liquids; manufacturing, marketing and shipping of oil products and chemicals and renewable energy projects including wind and solar power. Some investors blamed the complicated system for the overestimation of proved energy reserves by the company between January 2004 and February this year. The crisis resulted to the ouster of three top executives, including former chairman Philip Watts. Shell had admitted it overstated its proved reserves by almost 6.0 billion barrels. It was finned EUR150 million in total after investigations launched by U.S. and British regulators. Shell has said it had revised the method by which it calculates reserves to comply with U.S. regulations. Shell's proved reserves stood at 10.2 billion barrels at the end of 2004. CONTACT: ROYAL DUTCH/SHELL GROUP OF COMPANIES Carel van Bylandtlaan 30 2596 HR The Hague The Netherlands Phone: +31 70 377 9111 Fax: +31 70 377 3115 Web site: http://www.shell.com VENDEX KBB: Fitch Affirms 'BB-' Rating -------------------------------------- Fitch Ratings has affirmed the Senior Unsecured rating of Vendex KBB, previously Koninklijke Vendex KBB, at 'BB-' (BB minus) with a Stable Outlook, following the release of its full FY05 (ended January 2005) and Q106 results. At the same time a Short-term rating of 'B' has been assigned. Fitch has also affirmed Vendex's senior secured debt at 'BB' and Victoria Acquisition III B.V's EUR275 million 7.875% senior subordinated notes due 2014 at 'B'. As expected at the time of the leveraged-buy-out, Koninklijke Vendex KBB B.V. merged with VDXK Acquisition B.V. on 14 of July 2005, with Vendex KBB being the surviving entity. Pablo Mazzini, Associate Director in Fitch's Leveraged Finance team, said: "Despite tough trading conditions in its core Dutch market, Vendex's operating performance has been resilient and leverage has reduced slightly, mainly reflecting the strong cash flow generation since the LBO." In FY05, Vendex achieved an adjusted retail EBITDA from continued activities of EUR264 million (6.5% margin), compared to EUR249 million (6.0% margin) in FY04. This was mainly driven by its Belgian Do-It-Yourself operations and better profitability in the general merchandise retailer HEMA, which continues to enjoy high brand awareness among consumers. In Q106, the EBITDA margin remained fairly stable. However, the growth of like-for-like profits at department store Vroom & Dreesmann was worse than expected despite the closure of loss making stores and their related cost savings. Although V&D accounts for a small portion of Vendex's consolidated sales (17% in the last 12 months to April 2005), it continues to be an area of concern for the agency, as it remained loss making in Q106. The agency will monitor closely the progress made on its restructuring plan as well as further related cash outlays. The possibility of V&D widening its operating losses in FY06 will likely be treated as a negative rating factor. Consumer confidence and retail spending remain subdued in the Benelux market, with no signs of abating in the short term, while highly indebted Dutch consumers appear to be increasingly price conscious. GDP in Q105 fell 0.5%, its fastest decline since Q203, after growing 1.4% in 2004. The current prevailing negative retail environment, together with increasing competitive pressures, could potentially negate any progress made on internal reorganization or cost-cutting initiatives. However, Fitch notes that Vendex improved its EBITDAR margin in FY05 to 13.1% (FY04: 12.4%). The arrival of Tony De Nunzio as the new CEO may accelerate the streamlining of the operations although, in the current environment, such an effort translates into heightened uncertainty and greater execution risk. Net cash flows improved substantially, reflecting the focus put by the sponsor on cash flow management, and therefore working capital declined to 5.2% of sales in Q106 from 6.5% in Q405. The scope to further streamline working capital requirements, especially in the core DIY segment, together with increased product sourcing from the Far East and flexibility in capital spending, provides some comfort in the short to medium term. In the seasonally low Q106, Vendex generated net free cash flow of EUR37 million, compared to a negative of EUR23 million in Q105. Capital spending is expected to remain at around 3.5% of sales in FY06, the same level as in FY05 but below historical average (4.5% of sales between FY02 and FY04), largely driven by the reduction in spending at V&D. The current ratings are supported by substantial cash on-balance sheet in the retail business (the "restricted group" under the LBO structure) of EUR248 million as of April 2005 and EUR265 million available under the revolving credit facility. Although the (71) properties owned by Vendex are ring-fenced in a leveraged property company vehicle, this offers additional financial flexibility relative to a traditional retailer with no recourse to tangible assets. CONTACT: FITCH RATINGS Pablo Mazzini, London Phone: +44 (0)20 7417 3540 Jonathan Pitkanen Phone: +44 (0) 207417 4201 Web site: http://www.fitchratings.com Media Relations Jon Laycock, London Phone: +44 20 7417 4327 VERSATEL TELECOM: Books Second-quarter Earnings of EUR1.8 Mln ------------------------------------------------------------- Versatel Telecom International N.V. has reported second quarter 2005 financial and operating results. For the quarter ended June 30, 2005 revenues were EUR191.0 million, up 33% from 2Q04 revenues of EUR144.0 million and up 8% compared with 1Q05 revenues of EUR177.5 million. The sequential revenue increase was driven by all three countries and across all of the businesses. In the residential segment, the biggest increase was due to the addition of new DSL customers, as Versatel increased the total number of DSL customers to approximately 400,000. In the business segment, the revenue increase was mainly due to upgrades of service to existing corporate customers, new customers as well as a seasonal increase in on-net traffic. In total, on-net revenues for Versatel were EUR146.9 million in 2Q05 compared with EUR108.9 million in the same quarter of 2004 and EUR133.3 million in the previous quarter, an increase of 35% and 10%, respectively. Versatel's gross margin as a percentage of revenue in 2Q05 was 55.9% compared with 52.7% in 2Q04 and 55.6% in 1Q05. The net growth of the gross margin as a percentage of revenue was positively affected in Germany by lower network costs due to a price reduction of copper line rental as well as increased on net traffic, but negatively affected in The Netherlands by a further churn of dial-up internet revenues and an increase in fixed network costs as it upgraded capacity on its MDF back-haul for triple play services. Raj Raithatha, Chief Executive Officer, said: "Given the significant resources that Versatel is devoting to the roll-out of triple play services in The Netherlands, I am pleased that we were able to continue to grow our revenues in all of our markets. "Although this is positively impacted by seasonality in the second quarter, with high traffic on our network compared to the first quarter, we also managed to increase the number of customers in our business segment in all three countries. With regards to DSL connections, although we have seen a slow down in net additions in The Netherlands given the back-log of ADSL 2+ customers yet to be connected, we have seen good results in Germany and steady growth in Belgium." Selling, general and administrative expenses for the second quarter 2005 were EUR66.6 million compared with 2Q04 SG&A expenses of EUR48.6 million and 1Q05 of EUR60.6 million. The increase in SG&A during the second quarter is primarily due to an increase in marketing expenses and headcount related to triple play in The Netherlands as well as an increase of sales related costs in Germany. Versatel's marketing expenditures for 2Q05 were EUR8.7 million compared with EUR3.6 million and EUR6.3 million in 2Q04 and 1Q05 respectively. The increase is due to the extensive marketing campaign supporting the launch of the football product in The Netherlands last April, as well as increased marketing expenses in Germany. For the second quarter 2005, Versatel's result before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) was EUR40.3 million compared with EUR27.3 million for the corresponding quarter in 2004 and EUR38.2 million in the previous quarter. The sequential rise in EBITDA in Germany and Belgium offsets the decrease in The Netherlands, which resulted from increased SG&A expenses for triple play in the Netherlands. Given the significant additional investments that will be made in the second half of the year for triple play in The Netherlands and for the broadcasting of live Eredivise football, the company expects that EBITDA levels will decline sequentially over the rest of the year. Mark Lazar, Chief Financial Officer, said: "Despite substantially higher marketing expenses we showed solid growth in our EBITDA for the group, which clearly indicates the health of our underlying business. "As mentioned earlier this year, due to the introduction of ADSL 2+ services in The Netherlands and a growing business for the whole group, we will incur additional costs in the second half of the year, which will negatively affect our results for the remainder of 2005." Versatel's net result for 2Q05 amounted to a profit of EUR1.8 million compared with net losses of EUR4.0 million in 2Q04 and EUR2.5 million in 1Q05. Included in this net profit, is a gain of EUR0.4 million related to non-cash gains on its U.S. dollar denominated cash holdings given the strengthening of the U.S. dollar versus the Euro during the quarter. It also experienced an income tax credit of EUR1.4 million, which was attributable to losses at its Dutch operations that partially offset an existing deferred tax liability in The Netherlands. Although this net profit for the quarter is a testament to the underlying health of its historical business, Versatel will incur significant additional costs starting in the third quarter related to its triple play efforts in The Netherlands and the broadcast of live Eredivisie football, which will bring it back into a loss making position. For the second quarter of 2005, Versatel's capital expenditures were EUR66.9 million compared with capex of EUR25.3 million and EUR61.7 million for 2Q04 and 1Q05, respectively. Approximately EUR19.8 million of the capex in 2Q05 is directly related to the roll out of the triple play product in The Netherlands. From the total capex budget of EUR170 million for triple play services, approximately EUR45.8 million has been spent in the first half of 2005. Therefore capex levels will increase over the course of this year, as was announced in March 2005. Free Cash Flow in 2Q05 was negative EUR26.6 million, a decrease compared to 2Q04 with positive EUR1.9 million and 1Q05 with negative EUR23.5 million. The negative FCF is directly attributed to higher capex in the second quarter, as was incorporated in the 2005 financial guidance. In addition, given the accelerated investments for triple play in The Netherlands that will continue in the second half of the year, Versatel expects FCF to remain significantly negative in 2005. As of June 30, 2005, Versatel had EUR252.8 million in cash on its balance sheet compared with EUR143.7 million at the end of the second quarter of 2004 and EUR259.6 million at the end of the previous quarter. Versatel's cash balance will substantially decrease over the next two quarters as EBITDA levels decline and the capital investments become operational and invoices are received. The company had a positive shareholders' equity position of EUR572.5 million as of June 30, 2005 compared with EUR570.3 million at the end of the first quarter of 2005. As of 4Q03, Versatel has a deferred tax liability on its balance sheet in respect of the gain related to the completion of its 2002 financial restructuring, whereby any subsequent losses in The Netherlands are recognized and taken against this deferred tax liability. This deferred tax liability includes a tax effect on the convertible bond of approximately EUR8 million. At June 30, 2005, Versatel's deferred tax liability totaled EUR114.3 million. As announced in December 2004 and during the 2004 results, it continues to believe that its organic business plan, including the roll out of triple play services in The Netherlands, is fully funded without a need for third party financing. A copy of the financial results is available free of charge at http://bankrupt.com/misc/Versatel(2005).pdf. CONTACT: VERSATEL TELECOM INTERNATIONAL N.V. Wouter van de Putte, Head of Investor Relations Phone: +31-20-750-2362 E-mail: wouter.vandeputte@versatel.com Web site: http://www.versatel.com Cilesta van Doorn Manager Corporate Communications Phone: +31-20-750-1318 E-mail: cilesta.vandoorn@versatel.com =========== P O L A N D =========== POLISH OIL: Banks Grant EUR900 Mln Loan as IPO Fizzles out ---------------------------------------------------------- A consortium of banks has awarded Polish Oil and Gas Company (PGNiG) a EUR900-million loan deal to restructure its debt and fund investments, said Interfax. According to PGNiG CEO Marek Kossowski, the loan involves a 5-year EUR600-million tranche and a 3-year EUR300-million tranche, which will be used to pay an old loan due December, and refinance other debt, respectively. The loan is said to be enough to support some of PGNiG's PLN8.2 billion investment strategy. The 4-year plan will see improvements in its natural gas drilling facilities and gas-transmission infrastructure as well as finance ventures to diversify gas supplies. Alicja Woloszyn, of Citibank Handlowy, said: "This is one of the largest consortium loans in Poland." Citibank and Societe Generale headed the banking consortium, which also includes Pekao S.A., Fortis Bank, PKO BP and Caylon S.A. The company is expected to bring in about PLN1.5 billion of extra funding through an initial public offering, which was originally set for early July 2005. The IPO is now being considered for September. A further delay could mean an 85% reduction in the company's planned PLN2-billion investment this year. Mr. Kossowski said: "In order to carry out these investments we need funds from the IPO, otherwise we will have to revise these plans in all the areas we wanted to develop." PGNiG is a stock company owned by the State Treasury. With an initial capital of PLN5 billion, it operates in the whole country and outside Poland through a network of specialized divisions and companies. In October 2004, the Government adopted the new program of restructuring and privatization of PGNiG, which will see the transfer of its transmission company, operating since July 1, 2004, to the State Treasury. The Government will also maintain control of PGNiG by keeping a minimum 51% majority shareholding in the company. The amendments will also enable to postpone the spin-off of the exploration-production company from PGNiG's structure. The company is to be separated, once PGNiG joins the stock market and the latter's debt is cleared. CONTACT: POLISH OIL AND GAS COMPANY Krucza 6/14 00-537 Warszawa Phone: +48 22 583 50 00 Fax: +48 22 691 82 73 E-mail: pr@pgnig.pl Web site: http://www.pgnig.pl ============= R O M A N I A ============= ROMANIAI MAGYAR: Local Daily Runs out of Paper ---------------------------------------------- Newspaper Romaniai Magyar Szo folded up on July 30 due to a huge debt and low readership, Hungarian Duna TV reported last week. Editor-in-chief Janos Gyarmat said the decision to halt publication was made by the group behind publisher Transyl Ltd., not the editorial staff. He also put the blame on the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania, the ruling party, which accordingly is the reason why the government has ceased to advertise with the paper. The Hungarian paper, which is edited in Bucharest, has been suffering from low readership because of its poor quality. According to the report, the paper is notorious for publishing stories that are two to three days old. In addition, it uses MTI, the not-so-reliable national news agency of Hungary, as source. Jozsef Birtalan, Transyl's majority shareholder, denied Mr. Gyarmat's allegations, adding the group he referred to does not exist. The paper would have celebrated its 58th anniversary on September 1, the report said. CONTACT: ROMANIAI MAGYAR SZO 79776 Bucuresti 33, Piata Presei Libere 1. E-mail: rmsz@com.pcnet.ro Web site: http://www.hhrf.org/rmsz =========== R U S S I A =========== KALUZHSKIY MACADAM: Declared Insolvent -------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Kaluga region commenced bankruptcy proceedings against Kaluzhskiy Macadam (TIN 4004002084, KPP 400401001) after finding the factory insolvent. The case is docketed as A23-1610/04B-10-65. Mr. I. Khomyakov has been appointed insolvency manager. Creditors have until Sept. 16, 2005 to submit their proofs of claim to: (a) KALUZHSKIY MACADAM FACTORY 249856, Russia, Kaluga region, Tovarkovo, Tsentralnaya Str. 74 (b) Mr. I. Khomyakov Insolvency Manager 248000, Russia, Kaluga region, Post User Box 2 KOMI-MAZ-SERVICE: Insolvency Manager Takes over Firm ---------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Komi republic has commenced bankruptcy supervision procedure on limited liability company Komi-Maz-Service. The case is docketed as A29-2450/05-3B. Mr. A. Belyaev has been appointed temporary insolvency manager. Creditors have until Aug. 16, 2005 to submit their proofs of claim to 167004, Russia, Komi republic, Syktyvkar, Post User Box 2423. A hearing will take place on Sept. 6, 2005. CONTACT: KOMI-MAZ-SERVICE 167000, Russia, Komi republic, Syktyvkar, Garazhnaya Str. 1 Mr. A. Belyaev Insolvency Manager 167004, Russia, Komi republic, Syktyvkar, Post User Box 2423 Phone/Fax: (8212) 44-50-24 NIZHNEVARTOVSKIY: Proofs of Claim Deadline Expires Next Month ------------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Khanty Masiyskiy autonomous region commenced bankruptcy proceedings against Nizhnevartovskiy after finding the seaport operator insolvent. The case is docketed as A75-4403/2005. Mr. A. Kiselev has been appointed insolvency manager. Creditors have until Sept. 16, 2005 to submit their proofs of claim to: (a) NIZHNEVARTOVSKIY Russia, Tyumen region, Nizhnevartovsk, 60 Let Oktyabrya Str. 1 (b) Mr. A. Kiselev Insolvency Manager 628400, Russia, Tyumen region, Surgut, Bezverkhova Str. 5 PRILUZ-WOOD: Bankruptcy Proceedings Begin ----------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Komi republic commenced bankruptcy proceedings against Priluz-Wood (TIN 1112902224) after finding the limited liability company insolvent. The case is docketed as A29-7880/03-3B. Mr. A. Belyaev has been appointed insolvency manager. Creditors have until Sept. 16, 2005 to submit their proofs of claim to 167004, Russia, Komi republic, Syktyvkar, Post User Box 2423. A hearing will take place on Sept. 6, 2005. CONTACT: PRILUZ-WOOD 168130, Russia, Komi republic, Priluzskiy region, Obyachevo, Tsentralnaya Str. 4 Mr. A. Belyaev Insolvency Manager 167004, Russia, Komi republic, Syktyvkar, Post User Box 2423 Phone/Fax: (8212) 44-50-24 ROSLAVL-LES: Undergoes Bankruptcy Supervision Procedure ------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Smolensk region has commenced bankruptcy supervision procedure on limited liability company Roslavl-Les. The case is docketed as A-62-1694/2005 (638-N/05). Mr. Z. Danilova has been appointed temporary insolvency manager. Creditors may send their proofs of claim to 142280, Russia, Moscow region, Protvino, Lenina Str. 13A-48A. CONTACT: ROSLAVL-LES Russia, Smolensk region, Roslavlskiy region, Malye Kirilly, Golovleva Str. 112 Mr. Z. Danilova Temporary Insolvency Manager 142280, Russia, Moscow region, Protvino, Lenina Str. 13A-48A Phone: 8-926-288-0795 SEMENOVSKAYA MANUFACTURE: Bankruptcy Hearing Set October -------------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Moscow has commenced bankruptcy supervision procedure on open joint stock company Semenovskaya Manufacture. The case is docketed as A40-25577/05-86-45B. Mr. G. Udelnov has been appointed temporary insolvency manager. Creditors may submit their proofs of claim to 171510, Russia, Tver region, Kimry, Shevchenko Str. 16A. A hearing will take place on Oct. 20, 2005. CONTACT: SEMENOVSKAYA MANUFACTURE 105318, Russia, Moscow region, Tkatskaya Str. 5 Mr. G. Udelnov Temporary Insolvency Manager 171510, Russia, Tver region, Kimry, Shevchenko Str. 16A SEROVSKIY: Calls in Insolvency Manager -------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Sverdlovsk region has commenced bankruptcy supervision procedure on open joint stock company Serovskiy. The case is docketed as A60-14320/2005-S11. Mr. P. Lazarev has been appointed temporary insolvency manager. Creditors may submit their proofs of claim to 620000, Russia, Ekaterinburg, Main Post Office, Post User Box 106. CONTACT: SEROVSKIY 624992, Russia, Sverdlovsk region, Serov, Kuzmina Str. 92 Mr. P. Lazarev Temporary Insolvency Manager 620000, Russia, Ekaterinburg, Main Post Office, Post User Box 106 SMNU OMSK-VODA-AUTOMATICS: Declared Insolvent --------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Omsk region commenced bankruptcy proceedings against SMNU Omsk-Voda-Automatics after finding the close joint stock company insolvent. The case is docketed as K/E-101/04. Ms. I. Glazkova has been appointed insolvency manager. Creditors have until Sept. 16, 2005 to submit their proofs of claim to 644021, Russia, Omsk, Post User Box 7797. CONTACT: SMNU OMSK-VODA-AUTOMATICS Russia, Omsk region, 22 Partsyezda Str. 51B Ms. I. Glazkova Insolvency Manager 644021, Russia, Omsk region, Post User Box 7797 Phone: (3812) 31-36-28 SOCHI REPAIR-EXPLOITATION: Succumbs to Bankruptcy ------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Krasnodar region commenced bankruptcy proceedings against Sochi Repair-Exploitation Organization-16 after finding the state-owned enterprise insolvent. The case is docketed as A32-38955/2004-27/233-B. Mr. R. Shubin has been appointed insolvency manager. Creditors may submit their proofs of claim to: (a) SOCHI REPAIR-EXPLOITATION ORGANIZATION-16 354067, Russia, Sochi, Khostinskiy region, 50 Let SSSR Str. 15 (b) Insolvency Manager 354000, Russia, Sochi, Main Post Office 1477 (c) The Arbitration Court of Krasnodar region Russia, Krasnodar region, Krasnaya Str. 6 A hearing will take place on May 18, 2006, 2:15 p.m. at the Arbitration Court of Krasnodar region located at Russia, Krasnodar region, Krasnaya Str. 6. ZHIRNOVSK-MEZH-RAY-GAS: Under Bankruptcy Supervision ---------------------------------------------------- The Arbitration Court of Volgograd region has commenced bankruptcy supervision procedure on open joint stock company Zhirnovsk-Mezh-Ray-Gas (TIN 3410004100). The case is docketed as A12-13167/05-s48. Mr. A. Kharlanov has been appointed temporary insolvency manager. Creditors may send their proofs of claim to: (a) ZHIRNOVSK-MEZH-RAY-GAS 403791, Russia, Volgograd region, Zhirnovsk, Post User Box 4 Post address: 400131, Russia, Volgograd region, Kommunisticheskaya Str. 38 (b) Mr. A. Kharlanov Temporary Insolvency Manager 400087, Russia, Volgograd region, Post User Box 110 A hearing will take place on Oct. 4, 2005, 9:30 a.m. ========= S P A I N ========= RED ELITE: Files for Administration to Prevent Liquidation ---------------------------------------------------------- Home appliance retailer Red Elite de Electrodomesticos has applied for court-supervised administration, Expansion says. Red Elite filed for administration Tuesday at the commercial court in Barcelona after failing to reach a refinancing deal with local banks Caja Madrid, Banco Popular and Banco de Valencia. The consumer electronics retailer posted EUR19 million in losses and EUR70 million in debt for the year ended March 2005. Red Elite is an international and multinational private company generating EUR156 million in annual turnover from a network of 81 stores. CONTACT: RED ELITE DE ELECTRODOMESTICOS S.A. Avda. Ferrocarrils Catalans, 145-147 08940 Cornella de Llobregat Phone: 34 93 474 02 52 Fax: 34 93 474 08 45 E-mail: elite@redelite.es Web site: http://www.redelite.es CAJA DE AHORROS Y MONTE DE PIEDAD DE MADRID Plaza de Celenque, 2. 28013 Madrid Phone: 902 10 86 42 Web site: http://www.cajamadrid.es BANCO POPULAR ESPANOL S.A. 34 Velazquez St. 28001 Madrid Phone: +34-91-520-70-00 Fax: +34-91-577-92-08 Web site: http://www.bancopopular.es BANCO DE VALENCIA S.A. Calle Pintor Sorolla, 2-4 E-46002 Valencia Phone: +34-96-398-45-00 Fax: +34-96-398-45-70 Web site: http://www.bancodevalencia.es ===================== S W I T Z E R L A N D ===================== ABB LTD.: To Delist from Frankfurt, London Stock Exchanges ---------------------------------------------------------- ABB Ltd. has revealed its intention to delist its shares from trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange. ABB made the decision because the average daily trading volume of its shares on the FWB and the LSE has become insignificant over the past three years. The cross-border, electronic virt-x exchange based in London handles around 75% of the daily volume of trading in ABB shares, and the remaining volume is almost entirely traded on the Stockholm Stock Exchange and, through the ADR (American Depositary Receipt) program, on the New York Stock Exchange. Michel Demare, chief financial officer of ABB Ltd., said: "In today's electronic trading environment, it is no longer necessary to be listed on a large number of exchanges to provide investors with the opportunity to trade in our shares. Concentrating our trading volume on a smaller number of exchanges improves liquidity, and as a consequence the pricing of our shares." ABB will shortly file applications to delist from both the LSE and FWB. ABB will delist from the LSE after the close of trading on September 2, 2005 and it expects to finalize the delisting from the FWB before the end of 2005. ABB shares will continue to be listed on the SWX Swiss Exchange (traded on virt-x), the Stockholm Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. CONTACT: ABB LTD. Affolternstrasse 44 8050 Zurich, Switzerland Phone: +41 43 317 7111 Fax: +41 43 317 4420 Web site: http://www.abb.com ABB Corporate Communications Zurich Wolfram Eberhardt, Thomas Schmidt Phone: +41 43 317 6568 Fax: +41 43 317 7958 E-mail: media.relations@ch.abb.com Investor Relations Switzerland Phone: +41 43 317 3804 Sweden Phone: +46 21 325 719 USA Phone: +1 203 750 7743 E-mail: investor.relations@ch.abb.com =========================== U N I T E D K I N G D O M =========================== ABBEY SAFETY: In Voluntary Liquidation -------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Abbey Safety Limited (trading as HB & Troll Climbing), duly convened, and held at Abbeyfields Hotel, Tal y Bont, Bangor LL57 3UR, on July 14, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed, as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Claire L Dwyer be and she is hereby appointed Liquidator for the purposes of such winding-up." K. Lockett, Chairman of the Meeting and Company Director ASL TECHNICAL: Creditors to Name Liquidator ------------------------------------------- IN THE MATTER OF THE INSOLVENCY ACT 1986 and IN THE MATTER OF ASL Technical Support Engineers Limited (In Liquidation) I, Robert Caven of Grant Thornton U.K. LLP, 95 Bothwell Street, Glasgow G2 7JZ give notice that my partner Matthew Purdon Henderson and I were appointed Joint Interim Liquidators of ASL Technical Support Engineers Limited by Interlocutor of the Sheriff of North Strathclyde at Dumbarton on July 7, 2005. Notice is hereby given that, in terms of Section 138(4) of the Insolvency Act 1986, a Meeting of Creditors of Company will be held at 95 Bothwell Street, Glasgow G2 7JZ, on August 11, 2005 at 2:00 p.m. for the purposes of choosing a liquidator and of determining whether to establish a liquidation committee as specified in Sections 138(3) and 142(1) of the said Act. A list of names and addresses of the company's creditors will be available for inspection free of charge at the offices below, two business days prior to the meeting. All creditors are entitled to attend in person or by proxy, and a resolution will be passed by a majority of those voting. Creditors may vote whose claims and proxies have been submitted and accepted at the meeting or lodged beforehand at my office. For the purpose of formulating claims, creditors should note that the date of liquidation is July 7, 2005. Robert Caven, Joint Interim Liquidator July 21, 2005 CONTACT: GRANT THORNTON U.K. LLP 95 Bothwell Street Glasgow G2 7JZ Phone: 0141 223 0000 Fax: 0141 223 0001 Web site: http://www.grant-thornton.co.uk BEAULITE LIMITED: Calls in Joint Liquidators -------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of Beaulite Limited, duly convened, and held at The Crescent, King Street, Leicester LE1 6RX, on July 14, 2005, these Resolutions were passed, as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and that accordingly the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Tyrone Shaun Courtman and Jeremy Philip William Meadows, of Cooper Parry LLP, be and are hereby appointed Joint Liquidators of the Company for the purposes of such voluntary winding-up and that the Joint Liquidators are to act jointly and severally." At a Meeting of Creditors held on July 14, 2005 the Creditors confirmed the appointment of Tyrone Shaun Courtman and Jeremy Philip William Meadows as Joint Liquidators. T. J. Wright CONTACT: COOPER PARRY LLP 14 Park Row, Nottingham NG1 6GR Phone: +44 (0) 1332 295544 Fax: +44 (0) 1332 295600 Web site: http://www.cooperparry.com BLD STORES: Hires Administrators from Begbies Traynor ----------------------------------------------------- Name: BLD STORES LIMITED (Company No 03086506) Nature of Business: Bespoke Furniture Address of Registered Office: Begbies Traynor, Elliot House, 151 Deansgate, Manchester M3 3BP Date of Appointment: July 25, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: D. Bailey and S. L. Conn (IP Nos 006739 and 001762), both of Begbies Traynor, Elliot House, 151 Deansgate, Manchester M3 3BP CONTACT: BEGBIES TRAYNOR Elliot House 151 Deansgate Manchester M3 3BP Phone: 0161 839 0900 Fax: 0161 839 7436 E-mail: manchester@begbies-traynor.com Web site: http://www.begbies.com BLUESTREAM UK: Members Decide to Liquidate Firm ----------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Bluestream U.K. Limited, duly convened, and held at King Street House, 15 Upper King Street, Norwich NR3 1RB, on July 8, 2005, these Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Matthew Robert Howard and Robert Geoffrey Rose, both of Larking Gowen, King Street House, 15 Upper King Street, Norwich NR3 1RB, be and are hereby appointed Joint Liquidators of the Company for the purpose of its voluntary winding-up and are to act either jointly or severally." J. Soar, Director and Chairman C J VANDER: Administrators from PKF Take over Operation ------------------------------------------------------- Name: C J VANDER LIMITED (Company No 00763852) Nature of Business: Silversmiths Address of Registered Office: Knowle House, 4 Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield S2 3QE Date of Appointment: July 21, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: William Duncan and Ian C. Schofield (IP Nos 006440 and 002647), both of PKF (UK) LLP, Knowle House, 4 Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield S2 3QE * * * C.J. Vander first began silver-smithing in London in 1886, and is Great Britain's most famous sterling silverware manufacturer. CONTACT: PKF Knowle House 4 Norfolk Park Road Sheffield South Yorkshire S2 3QE Phone: 0114 276 7991 Fax: 0114 275 3538 COLERAINE F.C.: Court Adjourns Bankruptcy Hearing ------------------------------------------------- The bankruptcy hearing of Coleraine Football Club has been adjourned for a week, said the Belfast Telegraph. This came as creditors met Tuesday following the winding-up order served by the High Court last month. The football club, with debt of about GBP1 million, has sought for the postponement of the hearing for three to four weeks. However, Master of Bankruptcy Charles Redpath dismissed the request. He said: "The simple fact of the matter is this company cannot pay its debt. Realistically it has been unable to pay its debt for some considerable period of time." Mr. Redpath also expressed concerns for both players and those owed by Coleraine, saying that he is worried about "the creditors in this case, not least when you look down the list of creditors and see a number of people who are club supporters and other people with an interest in the club, not financial, who have lost substantial amounts of money." He urged the club to reach an agreement for the proceedings to continue without being advertised. The situation is no longer new to Coleraine officials, who have seen the club fight off bids to wind it up through last-minute arrangements over debt. CONTACT: COLERAINE F.C. The Showgrounds Ballycastle Road Coleraine Phone: +44 02870 35 36 55 Fax: +44 02870 32 91 88 E-mail: info@colerainefc.com Web site: http://www.colerainefc.com CONTRACT FLOORS.COM: Administrators Enter Firm ---------------------------------------------- Name: CONTRACT FLOORS.COM LTD (Company No 04858948) Nature of Business: Installation of Floor Coverings Address of Registered Office: 1 Collingwood Place, Blackpool FY3 8HU Date of Appointment: July 26, 2005 Administrators' Names and Addresses: Christopher Ratten (IP No 9338) of Tenon Recovery, Arkwright House, Parsonage Gardens, Manchester M3 2LF, and Simon Thomas (IP No 08920), of Tenon Recovery, Sherlock House, 73 Baker Street, London W1U 6RD CONTACT: TENON RECOVERY Arkwright House, Parsonage Gardens, Manchester M3 2LF Phone: 0161 834 3313 Fax: 0161 827 8402 E-mail: manchester@tenongroup.com Web site: http://www.tenongroup.com TENON RECOVERY Sherlock House 73 Baker Street London W1U 6RD Phone: 020 7935 5566 Fax: 020 7935 3512 E-mail: bakerstreet@tenongroup.com Web site: http://www.tenongroup.com CORK INTERNATIONAL: Calls in Joint Liquidators ---------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Cork International Operations Limited and Cork International Investments Limited, duly convened, and held at Regus, 68 Lombard Street, London EC3V 9LJ, on July 12, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Companies cannot, by reason of their liabilities, continue their businesses, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Companies be wound up voluntarily, and that Christopher Morris and Paul Michael Davis, of Begbies Traynor (South) LLP, 32 Cornhill, London EC3V 3BT, be and hereby are appointed Joint Liquidators of the Companies for the purpose of the voluntary winding-ups, and any act required or authorized under any enactment to be done may be done by any one or more persons holding the office of Liquidator from time to time." P. Callaghan, Chairman CONTACT: BEGBIES TRAYNOR (SOUTH) LLP 32 Cornhill, London EC3V 3BT Phone: 020 7398 3800 Fax: 020 7398 3799 Web site: http://www.begbies.com COROLLA LIMITED: Falls into Liquidation --------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of Corolla Limited, duly convened, and held at Conference Room 2, Portland Basin Museum, Portland Basin, Ashton under Lyne, these Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that David Graham Platt, of David Platt Associates, be and is hereby appointed as Liquidator for the purposes of such winding-up." G. Fielden, Director CORUS GROUP: Names Siemens' Italian Unit as Supplier ---------------------------------------------------- As part of its previously announced GBP130 million Long Products investment at Scunthorpe steelworks, Corus Group plc has named VAIPOMINI, the Italian based subsidiary of Siemens VAI, as its chosen supplier to manufacture and install new mill stands, as well as cooling and finishing processes, in order to introduce rail rolling alongside existing sections production. After a full technical appraisal and rigorous selection process, VAIPOMINI has been chosen to provide a technically-innovative solution that includes de-scaling facilities together with a seven universal stand finishing mill and state-of-the-art marking, hot-sawing and cooling equipment. In addition, VAIPOMINI will install despatch and handling equipment. Once rail production has moved to Scunthorpe from Workington, the new facility will enable Corus to roll rail in lengths up to 120m long in an inline continuous finishing mill; a world first for the steel industry. Andrew Page, Managing Director of Corus Construction and Industrial said: "VAIPOMINI is one of the world leaders in housing-less stand design and they have offered a technically robust solution that provides the consistent quality and high performance required to meet the exacting market demands for long products. "This investment not only introduces a rail rolling capability onto the mill but will offer improved tolerances and an enhanced service to our structural section customers." Gerard Glas, Managing Director of Corus Rail, said: "The production of longer rails is in response to our customers' evolving needs and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the rail industry and its future development." Giuseppe Ferrario, Managing Director of VAIPOMINI said: "We are delighted to be working with Corus to deliver the technically-demanding solution that they require. We will be providing a total manufacturing solution, offering Corus the flexibility to quickly change and setup rolling stands, in order to timely support its broad product mix." Corus expects the installation to be completed by summer 2006 with full production by the end of 2006. * * * Corus was created through the merger of British Steel plc and Koninklijke Hoogovens N.V. Headquartered in London, it is one of the world's largest steel producers. It suffered five years ago from the crisis in British manufacturing, which prompted it to shake up management, close plants, cut jobs, and sell assets to lower debt. Its debt was thought to stand at GBP1.6 billion in 2002. It planned to acquire Brazilian steel maker, Companhia Siderurgica Nacional, and sell European aluminum plants, but called the transactions off on market difficulties and opposition from the Dutch management. After posting net loss of GBP458 million in 2003, it embarked on a restructuring program, signed new EUR1.2 billion banking facility, and issued GBP307 million worth of shares. It returned to operating profit in the first quarter in 2004. The recent recovery of steel prices and the strength of the euro are expected to help it achieve relatively strong earnings. CONTACT: CORUS GROUP PLC 30 Millbank London SW1P 4WY United Kingdom Phone: +44-20-7717-4444 Fax: +44-20-7717-4455 Web site: http://www.corusgroup.com Annanya Sarin Corporate Communications Phone: 020 7717 4532 Simon Collins Local Media Phone: 01536 403 4801 CPS CIVIL: Calls in Wilson Field Administrator ---------------------------------------------- Name: CPS (CIVIL ENGINEERING) LTD (Company No 02544046) Nature of Business: Ground Works Trade Classification: Division 5-23 General Construction and Demolition Date of Appointment: July 22, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: Lisa Hogg and David Elliot (IP Nos 9037 and 5632), both of Wilson Field, The Annexe, The Manor House, 260 Ecclesall Road South, Sheffield S11 9PS CONTACT: WILSON FIELD The Annexe The Manor House 260 Ecclesall Road South Sheffield South Yorkshire S11 9UZ Phone: 0114 235 6780 Fax: 0114 262 0661 CRIMWAY LIMITED: Lighting Maker Hires Administrators ---------------------------------------------------- Name: CRIMWAY LIMITED (Company No 3056889) Nature of Business: Manufacture of Lighting Equipment Address of Registered Office: Noteberne House, 84 High Street, Southampton, Hampshire SO14 2NT Date of Appointment: July 26, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: Kevin James Wilson Weir and Gregory Andrew Palfrey (IP Nos 9332 and 9060), both of Smith & Williamson Limited, Noteberne House, 84 High Street, Southampton, Hampshire SO14 2NT CONTACT: CRIMWAY LTD 82 Durham Road London SW20 0TL United Kingdom Phone: (020) 8944 6789 Fax: (020) 8944 9594 SMITH & WILLIAMSON LIMITED Notebeme House 84 High Street Southampton Hampshire SO14 2NT Phone: 02380 831 050 Fax: 02380 831 051 E-mail: KW2@smith.williamson.co.uk CUZEN & MILNE: Creditors Meeting Set this Week ---------------------------------------------- IN THE MATTER OF THE INSOLVENCY ACT 1986 and IN THE MATTER OF CUZEN & MILNE LIMITED I, Blair Carnegie Nimmo, Chartered Accountant, KPMG LLP, 191 West George Street, Glasgow G2 2LJ, United Kingdom, hereby give notice, that by Interlocutor of the Sheriff of Glasgow & Strathkelvin dated June 29, 2005, I was appointed interim liquidator of Cuzen & Milne Limited trading as Strathkelvin Windows, having its registered office at 2/3 Kirkintilloch Industrial Estate, Milton Road, Kirkintilloch G66 1SY. Pursuant to Section 138(4) of the Insolvency Act 1986 and Rule 4.12 of the Insolvency (Scotland) Rules 1986, the first meeting of creditors will be held within KPMG LLP, 191 West George Street, Glasgow G2 2LJ at 10:00 a.m. on August 9, 2005 for the purpose of choosing a Liquidator. The meeting may also consider other resolutions referred to in Rule 4.12(3). All creditors are entitled to attend in person or by proxy and to vote, provided their claims and proxies, if any, have been submitted on or before the meeting. B. C. Nimmo, Interim Liquidator July 22, 2005 CONTACT: KPMG LLP 191 West George Street Glasgow G2 2LJ Phone: (0141) 226 5511 Fax: (0141) 204 1584 Web site: http://www.kpmg.co.uk C & X FASHIONS: Nominates Liquidator ------------------------------------ At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of C & X Fashions Ltd., duly convened, and held at 43 Blackstock Road, London N4 2JF, on July 18, 2005, this Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Andreas Georgiou Kakouris, 43 Blackstock Road, London N4 2JF, be and he is hereby nominated Liquidator for the purposes of the winding-up." S. Xiouris, Chairman CONTACT: KAKOURIS & MICHAELIDES 43 Blackstock Road London N4 2JF Phone: 020 7226 6196 Fax: 020 7704 6500 E-mail: info@agkakouris.co.uk EUJET: Court Appoints Examiner to Save Jobs ------------------------------------------- EUjet has been put into examinership in an attempt to rescue jobs at Shannon Airport and pay redundant workers at Kent Airport, said the Limerick post. The low-fare carrier EUjet has closed operation after parent company Planestation Group plc fell into administration due to continuing losses. The shutdown left 5,400 passengers stranded. The company presented before the court its plan to revive its main charter business and keep its airline Operations Certificate to lure potential buyers. The plan would also secure the jobs of 44 people at Shannon, while 160 former workers at Kent may receive redundancy fees. EUjet, which flies to 21 destinations, has booked more than 90,000 flights for the coming weeks. The company intends to refund around 100,000 passengers via their credit cards as its cash was reportedly still in an escrow account and had not been drawn down. Planestation administrators Grant Thornton have declared 127 employees redundant, and canceled all flights at Kent Airport, as the firm could no longer cover necessary insurance. However, some 65 workers have been retained to ensure the revival of the airport's operations. The parent company said EUjet's greater cash requirements are to be met by the sale of its 75 percent stake in Kent International Business Park, but it needed "an extension of facilities while the disposal was completed." CONTACT: PLANESTATION GROUP PLC 5 Berkeley Sq., Mayfair London W1J 5AB, United Kingdom Phone: +44-20-7495-8686 Fax: +44-20-7493-0189 Web site: http://www.planestation.com Contact: Richard Keith Bingham, CEO Martin May, COO EUROPEAN INTERIOR: In Voluntary Liquidation ------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of European Interior Technologies Limited, duly convened, and held at the offices of Harris Lipman, 2 Mountview Court, 310 Friern Barnet Lane, Whetstone, London N20 0YZ, on July 15, 2005, at 11:45 a.m., these Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the Company, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Freddy Khalastchi, of Harris Lipman, 2 Mountview Court, 310 Friern Barnet Lane, Whetstone, London N20 0YZ, an insolvency practitioner, licensed by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, is hereby appointed as Liquidator of the Company for the purposes of the voluntary winding-up." At the subsequent Meeting of Creditors held at the same place on the same day the voluntary liquidation was confirmed by the Creditors and the appointment of Freddy Khalastchi, of Harris Lipman, 2 Mountview Court, 310 Friern Barnet Lane, Whetstone, London N20 0YZ, as Liquidator was ratified. M. J. Blackwood, Chairman CONTACT: HARRIS LIPMAN 2 Mountview Court, 310 Friern Barnet Lane, Whetstone, London N20 0YZ Phone: (020) 8446 9000 Fax: (020) 8446 9537 Web site: http://www.harris-lipman.co.uk F B DELL: Calls in Liquidator from Poppleton & Appleby ------------------------------------------------------ At an Extraordinary General Meeting of F B Dell Property Developers Limited, duly convened, and held at Premier Tavel Inn, Warwick Road, off Elstree Way, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire WD6 1US, on July 14, 2005, at 11:30 a.m., this Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Ian Michael Rose and Robert Michael Young, of Poppleton & Appleby, The Old Barn, Caverswall Park, Caverswall Lane, Stoke on Trent ST3 6HP, be and are hereby appointed Joint Liquidators for the purposes of such winding-up and that the Joint Liquidators be authorized to act jointly and severally in the liquidation." F. Dellinger CONTACT: THE P&A PARTNERSHIP The Old Barn, Caverswall Park, Caverswall Lane Stoke on Trent ST3 6HP Phone: (0114) 275 5033 Fax: (0114) 276 8556 E-mail: info@poppletonappleby.co.uk Web site: http://www.thepandapartnership.com FLEXIBREAKS LIMITED: Names Antony Batty Liquidator -------------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Flexibreaks Limited, convened, and held at New House, Suite 24, 67-68 Hatton Garden, London EC1N 8JY, on July 15, 2005, at 11:00 a.m., these Resolutions were passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of the Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that William Antony Batty, of Antony Batty & Company, New House, Suite 24, 67-68 Hatton Garden, London EC1N 8JY, be appointed Liquidator of the Company for the purposes of the voluntary winding-up." V. Bussey, Chairman CONTACT: ANTONY BATTY & COMPANY New House Suite 24 67-68 Hatton Garden London EC1N 8JY Phone: 020 7831 1234 Fax: 020 7430 2727 E-mail: antonybatty@hotmail.com GAIM UK: Owners Opt for Administration -------------------------------------- Name: GAIM (UK) LIMITED (t/a The Enfield Hotel and The Burwood House Hotel) (Company No 04673099) Nature of Business: Hotel, Motel (with or without rest) Trade Classification: 47 Date of Appointment: July 25, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: Shay Bannon and Antony David Nygate (IP Nos 8777/01 and 9237), both of BDO Stoy Hayward LLP, 8 Baker Street, London W1U 3LL CONTACT: BDO STOY HAYWARD LLP 8 Baker Street London W1U 3LL Phone: 020 7486 5888 Fax: 020 7487 3686 E-mail: london@bdo.co.uk Web site: http://www.bdostoyhayward.co.uk GULF INTERMODAL: Calls in Administrators from Begbies Traynor ------------------------------------------------------------- Name: GULF INTERMODAL U.K. LIMITED (Company No 04873685) Nature of Business: Maintenance of Containers Address of Registered Office: 1 Winckley Court, Chapel Street, Preston PR1 8BU Date of Appointment: July 22, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: Andrew Dick and David Appleby (IP Nos 8688 and 8976), both of Begbies Traynor, 1 Winckley Court, Chapel Street, Preston, Lancashire PR1 8BU * * * With 30 years experience in the container industry, Gulf Intermodal U.K. Ltd. specialized containers to be designed and manufactured to its client's own requirements. Visit http://www.special-containers.co.uk/for more information. CONTACT: GULF INTERMODAL U.K. LTD Northgate, Morecambe, Lancs LA3 3AZ England, United Kingdom Phone: +44 (0) 1524 849294 Fax: +44 (0) 1524 847783 E-mail: sales@special-containers.co.uk BEGBIES TRAYNOR 1 Winckley Court Chapel Street Preston PR1 8BU Phone: 01772 202000 Fax: 01772 200099 E-mail: preston@begbies-traynor.com Web site: http://www.begbies.com INFO-BUIS SOLUTIONS: Calls in Liquidator ---------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of Info-Buis Solutions Limited, duly convened, and held on July 15, 2005, this Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Andrew David Rosler, of ICS (North East) Limited, 65 Duke Street, Darlington DL3 7SD, be and he is hereby appointed Liquidator for the purposes of such winding-up." G. S. Garcha, Director INTERNATIONAL POWER: S&P Revises Outlook to Stable -------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services revised its outlook on U.K.-based global power developer International Power plc to stable from negative reflecting the company's strong performance and successful implementation of several large acquisitions. At the same time, Standard & Poor's affirmed all its ratings on IPower, including its 'BB-' long-term issuer credit rating on the company. "The outlook revision is based on the smooth integration of the Edison Mission Energy portfolio of assets into IPower in addition to the company's strong operational and financial performance, which has exceeded expectations, and good level of contracted power for the next 12 months," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Magdalena Richardson. In addition, with the acquisition of the Saltend combined-cycle-gas-turbine plant, IPower now has a good and varied portfolio of assets in the U.K. The company's revolving credit facility has been refinanced and the net debt position at the holding company level was positive GBP141 million cash (EUR203 million) at June 30, 2005. IPower's consolidated debt capitalization at that time was 56%. IPower has sufficient levels of liquidity, adequate cash interest coverage levels, consolidated leverage of less than 60%, and an overall projected cash quality that is not expected to weaken. The stable outlook assumes that IPower will continue a process of organic growth through investments in individual projects. Ratings information is available to subscribers of RatingsDirect at http://www.ratingsdirect.com. It can also be found at http://www.standardandpoors.com. Alternatively, call one of the following Standard & Poor's numbers: Client Support Europe (44) 20-7176-7176; London Press Office Hotline (44) 20-7176-3605; Paris (33) 1-4420-6708; Frankfurt (49) 69-33-999-225; Stockholm (46) 8-440-5916; or Moscow (7) 095-783-4017. Members of the media may also contact the European Press Office via e-mail: media_europe@standardandpoors.com CONTACT: STANDARD AND POOR'S RATING SERVICES Group E-mail Address InfrastructureEurope@standardandpoors.com INTERNATIONAL SILVER: Names PKF Administrator --------------------------------------------- Name: INTERNATIONAL SILVER COMPANY LIMITED (Company No 3768277) Nature of Business: Ceramic and Giftware Distribution Address of Registered Office: Knowle House, 4 Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield S2 3QE Date of Appointment: July 21, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: William Duncan and Ian C. Schofield (IP Nos 006440 and 002647), both of PKF (UK) LLP, Knowle House, 4 Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield S2 3QE CONTACT: PKF Knowle House 4 Norfolk Park Road Sheffield South Yorkshire S2 3QE Phone: 0114 276 7991 Fax: 0114 275 3538 JARVIS PLC: Has New Chief Operating Officer ------------------------------------------- At the Extraordinary General Meeting of Jarvis plc, the resolutions relating to the proposals for the Increase and Reorganization of Share Capital and other matters in connection with the restructuring were approved by shareholders with the required majority for both Ordinary and Special Resolutions being met. Jarvis is currently proposing to affect the Debt for Equity Exchange by means of a consensual restructuring, rather than by way of Scheme of Arrangement. Further announcement providing details of the timetable for this exercise will be issued shortly. At the Extraordinary General Meeting, Richard Entwistle was appointed as the company's new Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Entwistle, a former director of Amey plc, will join the company and be appointed to the Board on 8 September 2005. Further particulars will be filed at the time of appointment. * * * In July, the company reported turnover has fallen to GBP585.7 million (2004: GBP1076.1 million), principally due to the transfer of rail maintenance to Network Rail with effect from 1 April 2004, a reduction in track renewals arising primarily from the slowing of work on the West Coast Main Line and the decision to withdraw from bidding for all construction and FM contracts. The reported loss before tax is GBP353.8 million (2004: GBP256.0 million loss) of which GBP246.8 million is exceptional and relates to provisions for construction losses, write off of goodwill in the roads businesses, costs incurred in relation to the restructuring of the Group and provisions in respect of aged debtor balances and certain work in progress. The Directors believe that the successful completion of the restructuring announced on 12 July and the continuation of the Group's strategy of focusing on the core businesses of Rail Plant and Road, aligned with further cost saving measures and exit from or stabilization of the non core activities of construction and FM, will provide a much improved base from which to develop the business. CONTACT: JARVIS PLC 24 Britton St. London EC1M 5UA United Kingdom Phone: +44-20-7017-8000 Fax: +44-20-7017-0083 Web site: http://www.jarvisplc.com Bridget Fury, Merlin Phone: 020 7653 6620 JUST CONSTRUCTION: Calls in Liquidator -------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of Just Construction Jobs Limited, duly convened, and held at Tomlinsons, Business Development Centre, Eanam Wharf, Blackburn BB1 5BL, on July 7, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable that the same be wound up voluntarily and that the Company be wound up accordingly, and that A. H. Tomlinson, of Tomlinsons, Business Development Centre, Eanam Wharf, Blackburn BB1 5BL, is hereby appointed as Liquidator of the Company." At the subsequent Meeting of Creditors held on the same date, the Resolution was ratified, together with the appointment of A. H. Tomlinson, of Tomlinsons, Business Development Centre, Eanam Wharf, Blackburn BB1 5BL as Liquidator of the Company. C. Morris, Chairman CONTACT: TOMLINSONS Business Development Center, Eanam Wharf, Blackburn BB1 5BL E-mail: advice@tomlinsons.co.uk Web site: http://www.tomlinsons.co.uk KLAUSSNER FURNITURE: Furniture Manufacturer Calls Administrator --------------------------------------------------------------- Name: KLAUSSNER FURNITURE INDUSTRIES (UK) LIMITED (Company No 1159913) Nature of Business: Manufacture and Retail of Furniture Trade Classification: 09 Date of Appointment: July 21, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: Dermot Justin Power and Matthew Dunham (IP Nos 6006/01 and 8376), both of BDO Stoy Hayward LLP, Commercial Buildings, 11-15 Cross Street, Manchester M2 1BD CONTACT: KLAUSSNER FURNITURE Lea Green Industrial Estate St Helens Lancashire WA9 4QA Phone: 01744 810110 Fax: 01744 819969 BDO STOY HAYWARD LLP Commercial Buildings, 11-15 Cross Street, Manchester M2 1BD Phone: 0161 817 3700 Fax: 0161 817 3711 E-mail: manchester@bdo.co.uk Web site: http://www.bdo.co.uk MADISONS ESTATE: Goes into Liquidation -------------------------------------- Company Name: MADISONS ESTATE AGENTS LTD. 109 High Street, Hounslow, Middlesex, TW3 1RT Registration Number: 03807656 Court: High Court of Justice Date of Filing Petition: May 12, 2005 No. of Matter: 003131 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 13, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 21 Bloomsbury Street, London, WC1B 3SS Phone: 020 7637 1110 Fax: 020 7637 6390 MDM LINCS: EGM Passes Winding-up Resolutions -------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of MDM Lincs Freight Limited, duly convened, and held at Forest Pines Hotel, Ermine Street, Broughton, Brigg, South Humberside DN20 0AQ, on July 15, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Claire L. Dwyer be and she is hereby appointed Liquidator for the purposes of such winding-up." M. Riby, Chairman of the Meeting and Company Director MEPC LIMITED: Moody's Downgrades Unsecured Bonds to B2 ------------------------------------------------------ Moody's Investors Service lowered to B1 from Ba3 the corporate family rating, and to B2 from B1 the long-term senior unsecured ratings, of MEPC Limited (MEPC). The B3 rating of the guaranteed preferred securities was confirmed. The outlook on all ratings is stable. These rating actions conclude the review initiated last year when MEPC announced its intent to adopt a secured debt financing strategy. Lowered ratings: MEPC Limited's -- (a) Senior unsecured bonds and issuer rating to B2, from B1; and (b) Corporate family rating to B1 from Ba3 Rating confirmed: MEPC International Capital LP -- rating for guaranteed preferred securities at B3. While acknowledging the valuation uplift registered in the six months to March 2005, Moody's said that the downgrade of the corporate family rating to B1 reflects the moderate size of MEPC's portfolio, and concentration of its six principal assets in the U.K. business parks sector. It also takes account that although steady rental income and lower debt levels have been reflected in better interest coverage, this remained very weak at just over one times in the six months to March 2005, if interest from the Leconport Estates loan is excluded. (Leconport Estates, MEPC's immediate holding company, has received a loan from MEPC derived from cash proceeds from earlier asset sales). Moody's added that the risk of future increases in loans to Leconport Estates, which at March 2005 stood at GBP1.4 billion, is also factored into the rating. The downgrade to B2 of the senior unsecured rating reflects the significant degree of effective subordination which will be experienced by MEPC's unsecured creditors as a result of the company's new secured credit facility, which is expected to be finalized over the next month or so. Moody's added that secured borrowing is set to dominate MEPC's capital structure going forward, leaving limited flexibility and unencumbered asset coverage (at less than one times if the Leconport loan is excluded) for the remaining unsecured creditors, predominantly the two rated Eurobonds maturing in 2006. Moody's noted that as part of the ongoing rationalization of MEPC's liability structure, it is likely that the outstanding $215 million preferred shares (QUIPS) will be called in the near future. The stable outlook anticipates that in the event that the QUIPS are called, adequate funding will be in place to settle this redemption. Headquartered in London, England, MEPC is one of the U.K.'s leading business park investors and developers, with a GBP906 million portfolio of investment and development properties at March 2005. MEPC's ultimate parent entity is BT Pension Scheme (BTPS). CONTACT: MOODY'S INVESTORS SERVICE LTD. (LONDON) David G. Staples, Managing Director European Corporates Phone: (Journalists) 44 20 7772 5456 (Subscribers) 44 20 7772 5454 Niel Bisset, Senior Vice-President European Corporates Phone: (Journalists) 44 20 7772 5456 (Subscribers) 44 20 7772 5454 MERLIN ADHESIVE: Administrators from BWC Business Move in --------------------------------------------------------- Name: MERLIN ADHESIVE TAPES LIMITED (Company No 05070189) Nature of Business: Printing, Packaging and Adhesive Tapes Registered Office of Company: c/o BWC Business Solutions, 8 Park Place, Leeds LS1 2RU Date of Appointment: July 26, 2005 Joint Administrators' Names and Address: Gary Edgar Blackburn and Paul Andrew Whitwam, (IP Nos 6234 and 8346), BWC Business Solutions, 8 Park Place, Leeds LS1 2RU * * * Merlin Adhesive Tape Solutions Ltd. offers an extensive range of single and double coated foam tapes, protection films, tamper evident tapes and bag sealing tapes. Visit http://www.merlintapes.comfor more information. CONTACT: MERLIN ADHESIVE TAPES (WEST YORKSHIRE) Birds Royd Lane Brighouse West Yorkshire HD6 1LQ United Kingdom Phone: +44 (0) 1484 721 118 Fax: +44 (0) 1484 721 818 E-mail: sales@merlintapes.com BWC BUSINESS SOLUTIONS 8 Park Place Leeds West Yorkshire LS1 2RU Phone: 0113 243 3434 Fax: 0113 243 5049 E-mail: bwc@bwc-solutions.com MG ROVER: Union Angry Over Phoenix Four's 'Lowered' Pledge ---------------------------------------------------------- Reports that the "Phoenix Four" will chip in just GBP5,000 each to the trust fund for former MG Rover workers have reportedly angered the Transport and General Workers' Union. This came after the Times revealed that the former Rover directors, led by chairman John Towers, had offered an amount lower that what they promised on account of the Department of Trade and Industry inquiry. Gerard Coyne, the union's regional secretary, said: "Rover workers have been badly let down here in another twist in a tale of greed. They were led to believe this fund would have substantial monies paid into it by the Phoenix Four." He described the pledge as "what amounts to a scrap over the petty cash." According to the Guardian, the four men earlier said they would inject assets of up to GBP50 million to the fund for about 6,000 workers affected by MG Rover's collapse in April. The figure was later brought down to between GBP10 million - GBP30 million. The directors then said that assets could not be endorsed to the trust until the DTI had issued a report on MG Rover's crisis. They provided no explanation, only that the move was based on legal advice. CONTACT: MG ROVER GROUP LIMITED Longbridge, Bickenhill Birmingham B31 2TB, United Kingdom Phone: +44-121-475-2101 Fax: +44-121-482-2403 Web site: http://www1.mg-rover.com MISYS PLC: Inks Partnership with Danish Bank -------------------------------------------- Misys Banking Systems, with its Misys Trade Innovation and Misys eServices Platform Trade Edition, has been chosen by Danish Spar Nord Bank A/S as a combined trade finance solution to help increase their portfolio of customer services. The selection follows a 14-month review of alternative trade finance solutions to replace their existing system. The choice was based upon Misys' ability to provide the best and most flexible Internet client front-end, offering full STP from front-to-back and seamless integration with the existing incumbent systems. The Misys solution will allow the bank to improve customer services by providing a market leading Internet front-end to its corporate customers. It will also help the bank to automate a large number of manual processes, thereby improving efficiency and reducing operational risk. Misys Trade Innovation with Misys Trade Edition will enable the bank to realize its strategy to become the "local bank of the future," combining a local presence with the advantages of offering full scale banking services. Hanne Balling, Senior Vice President and Head of International Division at Spar Nord Bank A.S., said: "Internet-based trade finance services are high on the agenda for most corporate customers, and we therefore decided to look for a next generation trade finance solution to remain competitive in this strategic business area. "We were impressed with the flexibility, ease-of-use and the breadth and depth of business functionality in Misys Trade Innovation and Trade Edition. The comprehensive business coverage and the intuitive and flexible workflow management capabilities will allow us to automate a range of previously manual processes and thereby reduce the operational risk, improve quality to clients and improve processing speed." Steen Jensen, Regional Manager at Misys Banking Systems, said: "Spar Nord Bank A/S has built an excellent reputation for professionalism and customer service. The Misys Trade Innovation and Misys Trade Edition solutions are very much in keeping with this profile, allowing the bank to offer customers a raft of services via automated STP front-end processes. We are delighted to continue to work with Spar Nord Bank A.S. to achieve their goals." * * * Sesame, a wholly owned subsidiary of Misys plc, has sold its 60% stake in Assureweb Limited, the B2B Internet portal for transaction of life and pensions business. The disposal of Sesame's stake in Assureweb is likely to give rise to a small accounting loss on disposal. Meanwhile, Misys plc has acquired regulatory risk management software firm, Almonde, for EUR15 million. The combined expertise of Almonde and Misys will bring together the leading forces in risk management technology to enable banks and corporate customers to manage their risks across the whole organization for Basel II or IAS compliance, risk exposure around ALM, or improving profitability around funds transfer pricing. In July, Misys reported annual turnover dropped to GBP888 million from GBP900 million last year, while operating profit rose to GBP41 million from GBP30 million. Kevin Lomax, Executive Chairman, Misys, said: "These results are encouraging. They reflect some improvement in trading conditions across our businesses but more importantly the benefit of the actions we have been taking to reposition our businesses for organic growth. It has been a year of real progress, one that gives us confidence for our future performance." CONTACT: MISYS PLC Burleigh House, Chapel Oak, Salford Priors, Evesham, WR11 8SP, United Kingdom Phone: 44 (0)1386 871373 44 (0)1386 871045 E-mail: group.secretariat@misys.co.uk Web site: http://www.misys.com NETWORK CENTRIC: Calls in Valentine to Liquidate Biz ---------------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of Network Centric Services Limited, duly convened, and held at the offices of Valentine & Co., 4 Dancastle Court, 14 Arcadia Avenue, London N3 2HS, on Thursday July 14, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of the Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Robert Valentine and Mark Reynolds, of Valentine & Co., 4 Dancastle Court, 14 Arcadia Avenue, London N3 2HS, be appointed Joint Liquidators of the Company for the purposes of the voluntary winding-up and that the Joint Liquidators be authorized to act jointly and severally in the liquidation." S. Perrin, Chairman CONTACT: VALENTINE & CO. 4 Dancastle Court 14 Arcadia Avenue, London N3 2HS Phone: 020 8343 3710 Fax: 020 9343 4486 Web site: http://www.valentine-co.com NORTHSEC GUARDING: High Court Orders Winding-up ----------------------------------------------- Company Name: NORTHSEC GUARDING LIMITED Swan House, Lakeside, Calder Island Way, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, WF2 7AW Registration Number: 04832110 Court: High Court of Justice Date of Filing Petition: May 25, 2005 No. of Matter: 003493 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 13, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 3rd Floor, 1 City Walk, Leeds, LS11 9DA Phone: 01132 338222 Fax: 01132 338332 NOVUS FOODS: Calls in Administrators from Baker Tilly ----------------------------------------------------- Company Names: NOVUS FOODS HOLDINGS LIMITED (Company No 03891982) NOVUS FOODS LIMITED (Company No 02888442) Nature of Business: R & D on Natural Science and Engineer and Non-specialized wholesale food Registered Office of Company: c/o Baker Tilly, Brazennose House, Lincoln Square, Manchester M2 5BL Date of Appointment: July 26, 2005 Joint Administrators' Names and Address: Stephen Mark Quinn and Lindsey Jane Cooper (IP Nos 005761 and 008931), Baker Tilly, Brazennose House, Lincoln Square, Manchester M2 5BL * * * Novus Foods Limited's managing director is KG Dickford. Visit http://www.suparnet.comfor more information. CONTACT: NOVUS FOODS LTD Unit 31 Leslie Hough Way Salford University Business Park Salford M6 6AJ Lancashire Phone: 0161 736 8180 BAKER TILLY Brazennose House, Lincoln Square, Manchester M2 5BL Phone: 0161 834 5777 Fax: 0161 835 3242 Web site: http://www.bakertilly.co.uk OBSERVANT ELECTRONICS: Fanshawe Lofts Administrators Enter Firm --------------------------------------------------------------- Name: OBSERVANT ELECTRONICS LIMITED (Company No 03744592) Nature of Business: Manufacture Electrical Equipment Registered Office of Company: Unit 14, Enterprise Centre, Lysander Road, Bowerhill Trading Estate, Melksham, Wiltshire SN12 6SP Trade Classification: 3162 Date of Appointment: July 22, 2005 Joint Administrators' Names and Address: Stephen John Adshead and Antony Robert Fanshawe (IP Nos 008574 and 005944), Fanshawe Lofts, 41 Castle Way, Southampton SO14 2BW * * * The company was formed in 1999. Its director is Jonathan Luke. Visit http://www.observantworld.comfor more information. CONTACT: OBSERVANT ELECTRONICS LTD. Unit 14 Enterprise Centre Bowerhill Industrial Estate Melksham SN12 6SP Wiltshire Phone: 01225 704631 Fax: 01225 793390 FANSHAWE LOFTS 41 Castle Way Southampton Hampshire SO14 2BW Phone: 023 8023 3522 Fax: 023 8023 3504 E-mail: sa@fanshawe-lofts.co.uk arf@fanshawe-lofts.co.uk PACKAGING LIMITED: Members Pass Winding-up Resolutions ------------------------------------------------------ At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Packaging Limited, duly convened, and held at Alexandra Dock Business Centre, Fisherman's Wharf, Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire, on July 15, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Charles Howard Ranby-Gorwood be and he is hereby appointed Liquidator for the purposes of such winding-up." M. Deans, Chairman P & P DESIGNS: Heads into Liquidation ------------------------------------- Company Name: P & P DESIGNS PLC 1 Panther Drive Panther House, 3rd Floor Brent Park Drury Way, London, NW10 0JP Registration Number: 03681313 Court: High Court of Justice Date of Filing Petition: May 12, 2005 No. of Matter: 003140 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 13, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 21 Bloomsbury Street, London, WC1B 3SS Phone: 020 7637 1110 Fax: 020 7637 6390 READCO 300: Hires PricewaterhouseCoopers Administrator ------------------------------------------------------ Name: READCO 300 LIMITED (Company No 04214112) Nature of Business: Bakery Registered Office of Company: PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Benson House, 33 Wellington Street, Leeds LS1 4JP Trade Classification: 9 Date of Appointment: July 20, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: Edward Klempka, Nick E. Reed and Derek A. Howell (IP Nos 174, 1168 and 788), of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Benson House, 33 Wellington Street, Leeds LS1 4JP * * * Readco 300 Limited is trading as Hilliers of Plymouth. It is the major baker of quiche and other bakery products for the retail market, employing around 350 people. CONTACT: PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS LLP Benson House 33 Wellington Street Leeds LS1 4JP Phone: [44] (113) 289 4000 Fax: [44] (113) 289 4460 E-mails: edward.klempka@uk.pwcglobal.com steve.a.ellis@uk.pwcglobal.com Web site: http://www.pwcglobal.com RENAISSANCE INTERNATIONAL: Calls in Administrator ------------------------------------------------- Name: RENAISSANCE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED (Company No 03852147) Nature of Business: Film Distributors Trade Classification: 9211-Motion Picture and Video Production and 9212-Motion Picture and Video Distribution Date of Appointment: July 15, 2005 Administrator's Name and Address: C. M. Iacovides of Jeffreys Henry Jacobs, (IP No 005428), Fergusson House, 2nd Floor, 124-128 City Road, London EC1V 2NJ CONTACT: JEFFREYS HENRY JACOBS 124-128 City Road, London EC1V 2NJ Phone: 020 7670 9010 Fax: 020 7670 9011 Web site: http://www.jhj.co.uk ROBERTS & BELK: Appoints Administrators from PKF ------------------------------------------------ Name: ROBERTS & BELK LIMITED (Company No 4605613) Nature of Business: Silversmiths Address of Registered Office: Knowle House, 4 Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield S2 3QE Date of Appointment: July 21, 2005 Administrators' Names and Address: William Duncan and Ian C. Schofield (IP Nos 006440 and 002647), both of PKF (U.K.) LLP, Knowle House, 4 Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield S2 3QE * * * Roberts & Belk Limited was established in 1810. CONTACT: PKF Knowle House 4 Norfolk Park Road Sheffield South Yorkshire S2 3QE Phone: 0114 276 7991 Fax: 0114 275 3538 S A CORPORATION: Winding up Gets Court Approval ----------------------------------------------- Company Name: S A CORPORATION LIMITED 24 Saint James's Road, Hampton, Middlesex, TW12 1DQ Registration Number: 02841014 Court: Bristol District Registry Date of Filing Petition: May 11, 2005 No. of Matter: 2124 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 13, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 6th Floor, Sunley House, Bedford Park, Croydon, CR9 1TX Phone: 020 8681 5166 Fax: 020 8667 8000 SMART CREATIONS: Members Pass Winding-up Resolution --------------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Smart Creations Limited, duly convened, and held at 20 Winmarleigh Street, Warrington, Cheshire WA1 1JY, on July 15, 2005, these Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Robert W. Keating, of R W Keating & Co, 20 Winmarleigh Street, Warrington, Cheshire WA1 1JY, be and he is hereby nominated Liquidator for the purpose of the winding-up." G. A. Furling, Director CONTACT: R. W. KEATING & CO. 2nd Floor 20 Winmarleigh Street Warrington Cheshire WA1 1JY Phone: 01925 245004 Fax: 01925 245357 E-mail: robert@rwkeating.fsnet.co.uk SOUTHERN CONSTRUCTION: Court Okays Liquidation ---------------------------------------------- Company Name: SOUTHERN CONSTRUCTION LIMITED Unit A, The Enterprise Centre, Cricket Lane, Beckenham, Kent, BR3 1LH Registration Number: 02642968 Court: Birmingham District Registry Date of Filing Petition: April 13, 2005 No. of Matter: 2367 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 18, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 6th Floor, Sunley House, Bedford Park, Croydon, CR9 1TX Phone: 020 8681 5166 Fax: 020 8667 8000 SPECIALIST INSTALLATIONS: Liquidation Receives Go Signal -------------------------------------------------------- Company Name: SPECIALIST INSTALLATIONS (TD) LIMITED. Cradoc House, Heol Y Llyfrau, Aberkenfig, CF32 9PL Registration Number: 04620311 Court: Bristol District Registry Date of Filing Petition: April 29, 2005 No. of Matter: 2021 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 6, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 2nd Floor Kings Wharf, 20-30 Kings Road, Reading, RG1 3ET Phone: 0118 958 1931 Fax: 0118 950 4941/3234 S P ETAIL: Appoints Liquidators from PKF ---------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of S P Etail Limited, duly convened, and held at Farringdon Place, 20 Farringdon Road, London EC1M 3AP, on July 13, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that S P Holgate and B J Hamblin, of PKF (UK) LLP, Farringdon Place, 20 Farringdon Road, London EC1M 3AP, be and they are hereby appointed Joint Liquidators for the purposes of such winding-up and that they are empowered to act jointly and severally in all matters." A. Simpson, Director CONTACT: PKF Farringdon Place, 20 Farringdon Road, London EC1M 3AP Phone: 020 7065 0000 Fax: 020 7065 0650 E-mail: info.london@uk.pkf.com Web site: http://www.pkf.co.uk STORE 4 LIMITED: In Liquidation ------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of Store 4 Limited, duly convened, and held at The Goddard Arms Hotel, High Street, Old Town, Swindon SN1 3EB, on July 14, 2005, these Resolutions were passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that this Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable that the same be would up, and that the Company be wound up accordingly, and that Robert Cooksey, of Bridgestones, 125-127 Union Street, Oldham OL1 1TE, be and is hereby appointed as Liquidator of the Company for the purposes of such winding-up." At a Meeting of Creditors held on the same date at the same location the above Resolutions were ratified by Creditors and the appointment as Liquidator of Robert Cooksey, of Bridgestones, 125-127 Union Street, Oldham OL1 1TE was confirmed. S De La Mare, Chairman CONTACT: BRIDGESTONES 125-127 Union Street Oldham Lancashire OL1 1TE Phone: 0161 785 3700 Fax: 0161 785 3701 E-mail: rlc@bridgestones.co.uk SUNHAND LIMITED: Winding-up Gets Green Light -------------------------------------------- Company Name: Sunhand Limited 24 Grays Inn Road, London, WC1X 8HP Court: Bristol District Registry Date of Filing Petition: June 1, 2005 No. of Matter: 2285 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 20, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 21 Bloomsbury Street, London, WC1B 3SS Phone: 020 7637 1110 Fax: 020 7637 6390 SWINTON TANNING: Calls in Liquidator ------------------------------------ At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Swinton Tanning Centre Limited, duly convened, and held at 20 Winmarleigh Street, Warrington, Cheshire WA1 1JY, on July 15, 2005, this Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Robert W. Keating, of R W Keating & Co, 20 Winmarleigh Street, Warrington, Cheshire WA1 1JY, be and he is hereby nominated Liquidator for the purpose of the winding-up." N. King, Director CONTACT: R. W. KEATING & CO. 2nd Floor 20 Winmarleigh Street Warrington Cheshire WA1 1JY Phone: 01925 245004 Fax: 01925 245357 E-mail: robert@rwkeating.fsnet.co.uk THOMAS CORK: Names Begbies Liquidator ------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Thomas Cork International Limited and Thomas Cork SM Limited, duly convened, and held at Regus, 68 Lombard Street, London EC3V 9LJ, on July 12, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Companies cannot, by reason of their liabilities, continue their businesses, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Companies be wound up voluntarily, and that Christopher Morris and Paul Michael Davis, of Begbies Traynor (South) LLP, 32 Cornhill, London EC3V 3BT, be and hereby are appointed Joint Liquidators of the Companies for the purpose of the voluntary winding-ups, and any act required or authorized under any enactment to be done may be done by any one or more persons holding the office of Liquidator from time to time." P. Callaghan, Chairman CONTACT: BEGBIES TRAYNOR (SOUTH) LLP 32 Cornhill, London EC3V 3BT Phone: 020 7398 3800 Fax: 020 7398 3799 Web site: http://www.begbies.com TIME-TEES CARS: Liquidators from Tenon Recovery Move in ------------------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of Time-Tees Cars Limited, duly convened, and held at Salisbury House, 31 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 5SQ, on July 14, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Nigel Ian Fox and Carl Stuart Jackson, of Tenon Recovery, Highfield Court, Tollgate, Chandlers Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 3TZ, be and they are hereby appointed Joint Liquidators for the purposes of such winding-up." S. Chick, Chairman CONTACT: TENON RECOVERY Highfield Court, Tollgate, Chandlers Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 3TZ Phone: 023 8064 6464 Fax: 023 8064 6666 E-mail: southampton@tenongroup.com Web site: http://www.tenongroup.com TITHERINGTONS LIMITED: Appoints Grant Thornton Liquidator --------------------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of Titheringtons Limited, convened and held at Grant Thornton U.K. LLP, Heron House, Albert Square, Manchester M60 8GT, on Thursday July 14, 2005, at 10:30 a.m., these Resolutions were passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of the Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Leslie Ross, of Grant Thornton U.K. LLP, Heron House, Albert Square, Manchester M60 8GT, be appointed Liquidator of the Company for the purposes of the voluntary winding-up." H. Sharma, Chairman CONTACT: GRANT THORNTON Heron House, Albert Square MANCHESTER M60 8GT Phone: 0161 834 5414 Fax: 0161 832 6042 Web site: http://www.grant-thornton.co.uk T & L BULK: In Voluntary Liquidation ------------------------------------ At an Extraordinary General Meeting of T & L Bulk Waste Limited, duly convened, and held at Verna House, 9 Bicester Road, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, on July 15, 2005, the subjoined Extraordinary Resolution was duly passed: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that John Michael Munn and Joseph Gordon Maurice Sadler, of Elwell Watchorn & Saxton LLP, 109 Swan Street, Sileby, Leicestershire LE12 7NN, be and are hereby appointed Joint Liquidators for the purposes of such winding-up." T. E. Chandler, Director CONTACT: ELWELL WATCHORN & SAXTON 109 Swan Street, Sileby, Leicestershire, LE12 7NN Phone: (+44) 01509 815150 Fax: (+44) 01509 815121 E-mail: office@ews-insolvency.co.uk Web site: http://www.ews-insolvency.co.uk UNIMET LLC: Gears up for Liquidation ------------------------------------ Company Name: UNIMET (LLC) LIMITED LLC Managers Limited, Roman House, 296 Golders Green Road, London, Nw11 9PT Registration Number: FC022558 Court: Bristol District Registry Date of Filing Petition: June 1, 2005 No. of Matter: 2284 of 2005 Date of Winding-up Order: July 20, 2005 CONTACT: Official Receiver 21 Bloomsbury Street, London, WC1B 3SS Phone: 020 7637 1110 Fax: 020 7637 6390 WEST COUNTRY: Calls in Liquidators from Begbies ----------------------------------------------- At an Extraordinary General Meeting of the Members of West Country Bonding Limited, duly convened, and held at 58 Queen Square, Bristol BS1 4LF, on July 11, 2005, these Resolutions were duly passed as an Extraordinary Resolution and as an Ordinary Resolution respectively: "That it has been proved to the satisfaction of this Meeting that the Company cannot, by reason of its liabilities, continue its business, and that it is advisable to wind up the same, and accordingly that the Company be wound up voluntarily, and that Simon Robert Haskew and Ian Edward Walker, of Begbies Traynor, 58 Queen Square, Bristol BS1 4LF, be and hereby are appointed Joint Liquidators of the Company for the purpose of the voluntary winding-up, and any act required or authorized under any enactment to be done may be done by any one or more persons holding the office of Liquidator from time to time." A. Coles, Chairman CONTACT: BEGBIES TRAYNOR 58 Queen Square, Bristol BS1 4LF Phone: 0117 929 4800 Fax: 0117 922 0114 Web site: http://www.begbies.com ********* 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-published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Frederick, Maryland USA. Larri-Nil Veloso, Ma. Cristina Canson, Liv Arcipe, Julybien Atadero and Jay Malaga, Editors. Copyright 2005. All rights reserved. ISSN 1529-2754. This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior written permission of the publishers. Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but is not guaranteed. The TCR Europe subscription rate is US$575 per half-year, delivered via e-mail. 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