/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCRLA

/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCRLA_Public/140926.mbx T R O U B L E D C O M P A N Y R E P O R T E R L A T I N A M E R I C A Friday, September 26, 2014, Vol. 15, No. 191 Headlines A N T I G U A & B A R B U D A HODGES BAY CLUB: Scheduled to Reopen in October ST JOHN'S DEVELOPMENT: Fires 4 Managers to Reduce Staffing Costs A R G E N T I N A ARGENTINA: Defies Contraction Forecasts, Stokes Data Concern ARGENTINA: Bond Holdouts Again Seek Sanctions Against Nation ARGENTINA: Bondholders Said to Consider Dropping Waiver Plan CLISA-COMPANIA: S&P Affirms 'CCC-' CCR; Outlook Still Negative B E R M U D A GCX LIMITED: Moody's Assigns B2 CFR & Rates $350MM Notes 'B2' B R A Z I L BANCO DO BRASIL: S&P Assigns 'BB-' Rating to Jr. Sub. Bonds BANCO DO BRASIL: Moody's Rates USD-Denominated Securities Ba2(hyb) OGX PETROLEO: Owner Faces New Charges in Brazil C A Y M A N I S L A N D S ANDIVI INVESTMENTS: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 CONOCOPHILLIPS KARA: Placed Under Voluntary Wind-Up CONTROL LIMITED: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 9 EVEREST TRADING: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 FOREST CAYCO: Commences Liquidation Proceedings HEMIJI FUND: Commences Liquidation Proceedings JOHNSTON RE: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 NOBLE SOVEREIGN: S&P Rates $1BB Floating-Rate Notes 'B+' VITALITY RE: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 WIMBLEDON FINANCING: Creditors to Hold Meeting on Sept. 30 WIMBLEDON FINANCING MASTER: Creditors to Hold Meeting on Sept. 30 J A M A I C A ALCOA INC: Optimistic About Aluminum Price P E R U PERU: Economy to Grow Less Than Forecast, Velarde Says - - - - - =============================== A N T I G U A & B A R B U D A =============================== HODGES BAY CLUB: Scheduled to Reopen in October ----------------------------------------------- The Daily Observer reports that after months of speculation, Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Minister Asot Michael has confirmed that the now defunct Hodges Bay Club is scheduled for a soft opening within a few weeks. In an interview with Observer media, Minister Michael said that the resort, which shut down in 2012, will be holding a soft opening some time in October, according to The Daily Observer. "The Hodges Bay Club, they're planning to have the soft opening early next month, and to have the final grand opening -- that's an additional 75 villas -- by February of next year," The Daily Observer quoted Minister Michael as saying. The report relates that Minister Michael also noted that several other projects were slated to come on stream soon. "We've also held talks with Butch Stewart. Two weeks ago he was in Antigua and he has committed to breaking ground early next year and to signing off on the Beaches resort, which will see an additional 400 rooms," Minister Michael said, The Daily Observer notes. The tourism minister added that the Antigua & Barbuda Labor Party administration was also in talks with the Sunwing Group out of Canada for the purchase of the Grand Royal Antiguan Resort, The Daily Observer relays. Minister Michael said plans were to refurbish the dilapidated facility and to bring it up to the level of a four-star hotel. The group also plans to build an additional five-star hotel on the property, the report notes. ST JOHN'S DEVELOPMENT: Fires 4 Managers to Reduce Staffing Costs ---------------------------------------------------------------- The Daily Observer reports that the managers of the Heritage Quay Shopping Complex, Heritage Quay Hotel, Multipurpose Cultural Centre and the Public Market Complex -- four entities under the ambit of the St John's Development Corporation (SJDC) -- were notified that their services would be no longer required. The senior employees were advised by way of a letter, dated September 23, that their positions were being made redundant as of November 1, 2014, according to The Daily Observer. Letters of dismissal were sent to Manager of the Public Market Complex, Jaymore Greene, and Fernando Abraham who heads the Multipurpose Centre. Vere Ford of Heritage Hotel and Foster Thompson, senior manager of the Heritage Quay Shopping Complex, were also given the boot. The Daily Observer notes that the missive, signed by Executive Director Neil Butler, cited that a policy decision was taken in June to "reduce staffing costs . . . in an effort to obtain a lower operational cost." Director Butler, in a document obtained by Observer media, said that following a review of staffing, "management has determined that the positions 'Public Market Manager' and 'Antigua & Barbuda Exhibition Cultural Centre Manager' should all be eliminated from the Organizational Structure of the Organization." Director Butler added that the service will be performed by a single person intended from November 1, 2014, The Daily Observer notes. Similar sentiments were shared in the letters to the bosses at Heritage Hotel and Heritage Quay, the report notes. The managers were told that they will be able to apply for positions under the new structure, however, there is no guarantee that they would be employed, The Daily Observer discloses. The quartet is also invited to make alternative suggestions for the Board's consideration provided they do so in writing no later than September 29, the report relays. A suggested compilation of payments due by October 31 was also attached to each letter. Meantime, the news of the termination has caught the attention of SJDC's former executive director, Senator Anthony Stuart, who said he was appalled by the decision, The Daily Observer notes. Mr. Stuart said he intends to fight for the cause of the dismissed managers, the report adds. ================= A R G E N T I N A ================= ARGENTINA: Defies Contraction Forecasts, Stokes Data Concern ------------------------------------------------------------- Charlie Devereux at Bloomberg News reports that Argentina's gross domestic product was unchanged in the second quarter from a year earlier, the government said, reviving doubts over the veracity of the data after JPMorgan Chase & Co. estimated a 1.7 percent contraction. First-quarter figures were also revised to an expansion of 0.3 percent from a 0.2 percent contraction, the national statistics agency said, according to Bloomberg News. From the previous three months, the economy grew 0.9 percent after shrinking for two quarters, Bloomberg News relates. Bloomberg News discloses that President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's government unveiled a new national consumer price index in February and then revised growth numbers after the International Monetary Fund threatened sanctions if it didn't improve the accuracy of the data. Doubt over the statistics has resurfaced as figures diverge from analyst estimates, said Daniel Kerner, head of Latin America research at the Eurasia Group, Bloomberg News relates. "They showed close to realistic numbers earlier in the year when they were under threat from the IMF and since then they've been gradually moving away from that," Mr. Kerner said in a phone interview with Bloomberg News from Washington. "They never really moved towards transparency," Mr. Kerner added. The median forecast of 10 economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for a contraction of 0.4 percent in the second quarter. Imports fell 10.5 percent, while exports slid 3.7 percent, the government said in a statement obtained by Bloomberg News. Recession Forecast The economy will deteriorate further in the second half of the year as the second default in 13 years puts pressure on dwindling reserves that are forcing the government to cut imports, said Miguel Kiguel, director of Buenos Aires-based consultancy EconViews, Bloomberg News relates. "The economy began slowing from the first quarter because of a lack of reserves," Director Kiguel, a former deputy economy minister, told Bloomberg News in a telephone interview before Sept. 25's report. "The default complicated a situation that was already bad," Mr. Kiguel added. Bloomberg News says that the July default has spurred demand for dollars, pushing the peso down 23 percent against the dollar on the black market to a record ARS15.95 per dollar. The widening gap with the official rate of ARS8.42 pesos is fueling speculation the government will have to devalue, Bloomberg News notes. Seeking to preserve international reserves that have declined 19 percent in the past year to US$28.2 billion, the government has increased import limits, Bloomberg News notes. Import Slump The limits and weaker domestic demand pushed imports down 20 percent to US$5.7 billion in August from a year earlier, the biggest decline since October 2009, Bloomberg News discloses. Bloomberg News says the drop in consumer spending and a flagging Brazilian economy cut Argentine vehicle sales by 43 percent to 51,000 units in August from a year earlier. In response to falling demand, the government signed an accord with credit card companies including Visa Inc. and MasterCard Inc. to provide shoppers with interest-free credit payable in 12 monthly installments to buy domestically-produced household appliances, bicycles and clothing, Bloomberg News notes. The government this month revised down its growth estimates for 2014 to 0.5 percent from 6.2 percent, Bloomberg News relays. The economy will grow 2.8 percent in 2015, Economy Minister Axel Kicillof said Sept. 15 while presenting next year's budget in Congress, notes the report. JPMorgan said in a note to clients Sept. 19 that growth figures may diverge from market expectations, says Bloomberg News. While the government is likely to report a contraction of 0.4 percent this year, the New York-based bank expects the economy to shrink 1.6 percent, Bloomberg News relates. "As recession lingers the risk of a setback in the normalization of economic data reporting increases," analysts Vladimir Werning and Iker Cabiedes wrote in the report obtained by Bloomberg News. * * * The Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America, on Aug. 1, 2014, reported that Argentina defaulted on some of its debt late July 30 after expiration of a 30-day grace period on a US$539 million interest payment. Earlier that day, talks with a court- appointed mediator ended without resolving a standoff between the country and a group of hedge funds seeking full payment on bonds that the country had defaulted on in 2001. A U.S. judge had ruled that the interest payment couldn't be made unless the hedge funds led by Elliott Management Corp., got the US$1.5 billion they claimed. The country hasn't been able to access international credit markets since its US$95 billion default 13 years ago. As a result, reported the TCR-LA on Aug. 1, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered its unsolicited long-and short-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings on the Republic of Argentina to selective default ('SD') from 'CCC-/C'. The TCR-LA, on Aug. 4, 2014, also reported that Fitch Ratings downgraded Argentina's Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to 'RD' from 'CC', and its Short-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating to 'RD' from 'C'. Meanwhile, Moody's Investors Service affirmed Argentina's Caa1 issuer rating, which also applies to domestic law bonds, confirmed the (P)Caa2 rating for its foreign law bonds, and affirmed the Ca rating on the original defaulted bonds. The long-term issuer rating was placed on negative outlook, reported the TCR-LA on Aug. 5, 2014. On Aug. 8, 2014, the TCR-LA reported that Moody's Latin America Agente de Calificacion de Riesgo affirmed the deposit, debt, issuer and corporate family ratings on Argentina's banks and financial institutions, both on the global and national scales. The outlook on these ratings has been changed to negative from stable. At the same time, the rating agency has affirmed the banks' Caa2 foreign-currency deposit ratings and Not- Prime short-term ratings. The banks' standalone E financial strength ratings corresponding to caa1 baseline credit assessments (BCA) have also been affirmed. The TCR-LA, On Aug. 6, 2014, also reported that DBRS Inc. has downgraded Argentina's long-term foreign currency issuer rating from CC to Selective Default (SD). The short-term foreign currency rating has been downgraded to Default (D), from R-5. The long-term and short-term local currency issuer ratings have been confirmed at B (low) and R-5, respectively. The trend on the long-term local currency rating is Negative, and the trend on the short-term local currency rating is Stable. ARGENTINA: Bond Holdouts Again Seek Sanctions Against Nation ------------------------------------------------------------ Bob Van Voris at Bloomberg News reports that holders of Argentina's defaulted debt asked a U.S. judge to find the nation in contempt of court and fine it US$50,000 a day for disobeying his orders. Billionaire Paul Singer's NML Capital, Aurelius Capital Management LP and other holders of more than US$1.5 billion in defaulted Argentine bonds asked U.S. District Judge Thomas Griesa to impose the sanctions two days after Argentina published full-page ads in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal announcing plans to drop Bank of New York Mellon Corp. as trustee for its restructured debt, according to Bloomberg News. "Argentina has blatantly and repeatedly violated the court's orders, making abundantly clear that it has no respect for those orders, the court or the U.S. judicial system," the holders of the defaulted bonds said in a filing in Manhattan federal court, Bloomberg News notes. Judge Griesa set a hearing on the matter for Sept. 29. The judge previously threatened Argentina with sanctions for violating his orders in the past, Bloomberg News recalls. In August, NML asked Judge Griesa to find the nation in contempt of court after government officials announced a plan to swap Argentina's restructured debt for bonds paid locally, to avoid the jurisdiction of U.S. courts, Bloomberg News relates. Judge Griesa denied that request, saying a contempt ruling wouldn't help the parties negotiate a resolution to their stalemate, Bloomberg News discloses. Judge Griesa has ruled that Argentina can't make payments on its restructured debt unless it also pays the NML-led group in full, Bloomberg News relays. Argentina was forced into default on its performing debt July 30 after BNY Mellon, complying with Judge Griesa's orders, refused to pass to bondholders a US$539 million payment, Bloomberg News adds. The case is NML Capital Ltd. v. Republic of Argentina, 08-cv- 06978, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan). * * * The Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America, on Aug. 1, 2014, reported that Argentina defaulted on some of its debt late July 30 after expiration of a 30-day grace period on a US$539 million interest payment. Earlier that day, talks with a court- appointed mediator ended without resolving a standoff between the country and a group of hedge funds seeking full payment on bonds that the country had defaulted on in 2001. A U.S. judge had ruled that the interest payment couldn't be made unless the hedge funds led by Elliott Management Corp., got the US$1.5 billion they claimed. The country hasn't been able to access international credit markets since its US$95 billion default 13 years ago. As a result, reported the TCR-LA on Aug. 1, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered its unsolicited long-and short-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings on the Republic of Argentina to selective default ('SD') from 'CCC-/C'. The TCR-LA, on Aug. 4, 2014, also reported that Fitch Ratings downgraded Argentina's Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to 'RD' from 'CC', and its Short-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating to 'RD' from 'C'. Meanwhile, Moody's Investors Service affirmed Argentina's Caa1 issuer rating, which also applies to domestic law bonds, confirmed the (P)Caa2 rating for its foreign law bonds, and affirmed the Ca rating on the original defaulted bonds. The long-term issuer rating was placed on negative outlook, reported the TCR-LA on Aug. 5, 2014. On Aug. 8, 2014, the TCR-LA reported that Moody's Latin America Agente de Calificacion de Riesgo affirmed the deposit, debt, issuer and corporate family ratings on Argentina's banks and financial institutions, both on the global and national scales. The outlook on these ratings has been changed to negative from stable. At the same time, the rating agency has affirmed the banks' Caa2 foreign-currency deposit ratings and Not- Prime short-term ratings. The banks' standalone E financial strength ratings corresponding to caa1 baseline credit assessments (BCA) have also been affirmed. The TCR-LA, On Aug. 6, 2014, also reported that DBRS Inc. has downgraded Argentina's long-term foreign currency issuer rating from CC to Selective Default (SD). The short-term foreign currency rating has been downgraded to Default (D), from R-5. The long-term and short-term local currency issuer ratings have been confirmed at B (low) and R-5, respectively. The trend on the long-term local currency rating is Negative, and the trend on the short-term local currency rating is Stable. ARGENTINA: Bondholders Said to Consider Dropping Waiver Plan ------------------------------------------------------------ Katia Porzecanski at Bloomberg News reports that a group of Argentina's bondholders may drop an effort to get investors to waive a securities clause that the country said was an obstacle to resolving its debt dispute, according to three investors with direct knowledge of the plan. The group, led by law firm Latham & Watkins LLP, had planned to start a consent solicitation in early September to waive the clause by Sept. 30, when a coupon payment on Argentina's overseas bonds is due, the people said, according to Bloomberg News. The solicitation never started, and at this point there's probably not enough time to gather sufficient support, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the effort was being conducted privately, Bloomberg News notes. The Rights Upon Future Offers clause, known as RUFO, requires Argentina to sweeten payments for investors if it voluntarily pays a group of hedge funds who successfully sued the country for full repayment on bonds that defaulted in 2001, Bloomberg News discloses. Argentina says the clause could trigger as much as US$120 billion in additional claims. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner's government, which in July presided over the nation's second default in 13 years, said the RUFO clause prevented it from voluntarily extending better terms to the hedge funds, Bloomberg News notes. That in turn contributed to the default, since the country was blocked by a U.S. judge from making regular bond payments unless the hedge funds also got paid, Bloomberg News relays. Financial Intermediaries The waiver effort represented creditors with at least EUR7 billion (US$9.3 billion) of restructured Argentine debt, Christopher Clark, a Latham attorney, said in August, Bloomberg News notes. While that's more than 40 percent of the approximately US$23 billion of notes containing the clause, agreement from 85 percent of creditors would be needed for the waiver to take effect, Bloomberg News relates. The delay in starting the consent solicitation was partly due to financial intermediaries, such as clearinghouses, wanting assurance that they could participate without facing legal risks, the people said, notes the report. Lack of clarity about the government's willingness to support the waiver also helped to stall the effort, two of the people said, Bloomberg News notes. After Sept. 30, Argentina's next bond coupon payment is due Dec. 2. The RUFO clause expires Dec. 31. * * * The Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America, on Aug. 1, 2014, reported that Argentina defaulted on some of its debt late July 30 after expiration of a 30-day grace period on a US$539 million interest payment. Earlier that day, talks with a court- appointed mediator ended without resolving a standoff between the country and a group of hedge funds seeking full payment on bonds that the country had defaulted on in 2001. A U.S. judge had ruled that the interest payment couldn't be made unless the hedge funds led by Elliott Management Corp., got the US$1.5 billion they claimed. The country hasn't been able to access international credit markets since its US$95 billion default 13 years ago. As a result, reported the TCR-LA on Aug. 1, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered its unsolicited long-and short-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings on the Republic of Argentina to selective default ('SD') from 'CCC-/C'. The TCR-LA, on Aug. 4, 2014, also reported that Fitch Ratings downgraded Argentina's Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to 'RD' from 'CC', and its Short-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating to 'RD' from 'C'. Meanwhile, Moody's Investors Service affirmed Argentina's Caa1 issuer rating, which also applies to domestic law bonds, confirmed the (P)Caa2 rating for its foreign law bonds, and affirmed the Ca rating on the original defaulted bonds. The long-term issuer rating was placed on negative outlook, reported the TCR-LA on Aug. 5, 2014. On Aug. 8, 2014, the TCR-LA reported that Moody's Latin America Agente de Calificacion de Riesgo affirmed the deposit, debt, issuer and corporate family ratings on Argentina's banks and financial institutions, both on the global and national scales. The outlook on these ratings has been changed to negative from stable. At the same time, the rating agency has affirmed the banks' Caa2 foreign-currency deposit ratings and Not- Prime short-term ratings. The banks' standalone E financial strength ratings corresponding to caa1 baseline credit assessments (BCA) have also been affirmed. The TCR-LA, On Aug. 6, 2014, also reported that DBRS Inc. has downgraded Argentina's long-term foreign currency issuer rating from CC to Selective Default (SD). The short-term foreign currency rating has been downgraded to Default (D), from R-5. The long-term and short-term local currency issuer ratings have been confirmed at B (low) and R-5, respectively. The trend on the long-term local currency rating is Negative, and the trend on the short-term local currency rating is Stable. CLISA-COMPANIA: S&P Affirms 'CCC-' CCR; Outlook Still Negative -------------------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'CCC-' corporate credit and issue-level ratings on CLISA-Compania Latinoamericana de Infrastructura & Servicios S.A. (CLISA). The outlook remains negative. On Sept. 10, 2014, Standard & Poor's assigned its 'CCC-' ratings to CLISA's proposed three-year senior unsecured bullet notes for up to $120 million, which the company plans to offer in exchange for its amortizing Series 3 notes, which mature in 2016. "The rating affirmation follows CLISA's intention to extend the final maturity of its proposed notes to 2019. S&P continues to view the proposed exchange offer as a liability management transaction," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Cecilia Fullone. In S&P's view, CLISA would be able to pay the first installment of its $120 million note due Dec. 2014 with internal funds generation and loans with local banks if it fails to perform the exchange. Additionally, it will carry out the transaction at par, and the company is offering additional basis points, which in S&P's view reasonably compensate for the maturity extension. ============= B E R M U D A ============= GCX LIMITED: Moody's Assigns B2 CFR & Rates $350MM Notes 'B2' ------------------------------------------------------------- Moody's Investors Service has assigned a definitive B2 corporate family rating (CFR) to GCX Limited ("GCX") and a definitive B2 instrument rating to its $350 million senior secured guaranteed notes due July 2019. The outlook on the ratings is stable. GCX is a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Communications Ltd (India) ("RCOM", unrated) through an intermediary holding company Global Cloud Xchange Limited ("GCXL"). This action follows the repayment of $250 million of shareholder loans (after netting the inter company balances) availed from RCOM and its subsidiaries to GCX. RCOM in turn used the proceeds to reduce indebtedness at Reliance Globalcom BV ("RGBV"), its wholly owned subsidiary, specifically debt outstanding under its million senior secured bank loan ("SCB loan facility"). This repayment allowed the release over GCX's and GCXL's equity interests and assets which were used to as security for the facility. Both entities were also released as guarantors. In September, GCX also closed a $30 million revolving credit facility which will expire in July 2017. The terms and conditions are largely in line with Moody's expectations. Ratings Rationale GCX's B2 CFR continues to reflect its position as one of the largest privately owned submarine cable network operators globally, which enables it to benefit from ongoing growth in global Internet traffic, particularly in the emerging market corridor in areas such as India and the Middle East. GCX's underlying sales with respect to its subsea cables are based on long-term contracts known as Indefeasible Rights of Use (IRU). These contracts, together with associated operations & maintenance contracts provide a high degree of revenue visibility accounting for roughly 90% of its projected revenue for the fiscal year ending 31 March 2015 (FYE3/2015). Notwithstanding this, GCX remains exposed to cash flow volatility resulting from the mismatch between cash flow impact and revenue recognition of these contracts. Moody's estimates GCX must execute more than $60 million of new IRU contracts per annum to avoid a significant working capital outflow and depletion of cash. GCX signed approximately $37 million of new IRU contracts for delivery in FYE3/2015 of which around $12.5 million was activated and billed in the financial quarter ended 30 June. GCX also remains exposed to an intensely competitive and highly fragmented operating environment, which suffers from chronic over- capacity resulting in declining price levels, and which will continue to pressure its operating performance over the next two to three years at least. Moody's remains cautious on GCX's ability to attract new customers, generate higher occupancy rates, and ramp up its value- added services, given adverse pricing dynamics and intense competition in the broader industry. The stable outlook is based on an expectation that GCX delivers on its business plan which should arrest historical declines in revenues and EBITDA. As a result, Moody's expects GCX to generate EBITDA of at least $135 million by FYE3/2015 and maintain adjusted debt/EBITDA below 3.5x. Additionally, Moody's expect GCX to maintain a sufficient cushion under its financial maintenance covenants that govern the senior secured working capital facility, including a minimum coverage (EBITDA/interest) of 3.0x and maximum leverage (debt/EBITDA) of 3.75x. Furthermore, the stable outlook does not consider any significant cash payouts with respect to outstanding tax litigation claims. Upward pressure is unlikely over the near-term but could emerge should the company's fundamental financial position improve such that EBITDA is sustained above $175 million and EBITDA margins are sustained above 30% resulting in adjusted debt/EBITDA below 2.5x. On the other hand, negative rating pressure could emerge should GCX fail to execute on its growth ambitions such that its credit profile erodes. Specific indicators that Moody's would consider include adjusted debt/EBITDA rising above 4.5x, failure to move towards operating profit, or a tightening of the company's liquidity profile such that cash falls below $40-50 million. Moody's will be concerned if the cushion under the company's maintenance financial covenants were less than 15% or a sizable cash settlement was paid with respect to any of its outstanding legal claims. The principal methodology used in this rating was the Global Communications Infrastructure Rating Methodology published in June 2011. GCX, incorporated in Bermuda in 2014, wholly owns five subsea cable systems on major data traffic routes. As of 30 June 2014, these cable systems had a total length of 68,698 kilometers with 46 landing stations in 27 countries. GCX provides data connectivity solutions to major telecommunications carriers and large multinational enterprises in the US, Europe, Middle East and Asia Pacific region with a need for multi-national IP-based solutions and connectivity. =========== B R A Z I L =========== BANCO DO BRASIL: S&P Assigns 'BB-' Rating to Jr. Sub. Bonds ----------------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said it has assigned its 'BB-' rating to Brazil-based bank, Banco do Brasil S.A.'s (BdB; BBB- /Stable/--) perpetual, noncumulative junior subordinated bonds. The rating on these bonds is three notches lower than the issuer credit rating on the bank. The rating reflects a one-notch deduction due to subordination risk and a two-notch deduction for deferral risk because the bonds contain deferral clauses and the issuer expects them to be part of their Tier 1 instruments. Brazilian banks are compliant with Basel III standards. S&P do not apply additional notching for write-off or conversion risk because it believes that under a stress scenario the government would very likely provide extraordinary preemptive support to BdB at a relatively early stage of its deterioration. Furthermore, such support would not constitute a nonviability event for BdB. Therefore, principal write-down or equity conversion of the hybrid are unlikely to occur. S&P's ratings on BdB reflect the bank's "very strong" business position, "moderate" capital and earnings, "adequate" risk position, "above average" funding and "adequate" liquidity compared with other banks in the Brazilian financial system. S&P views BdB as a government-related entity, as the Federative Republic of Brazil (foreign currency: BBB-/Stable/A-3; local currency: BBB+/Stable/A-2) is its majority owner, and S&P believes there is a "very high" likelihood that the government would provide timely and sufficient extraordinary support to BdB if needed. RATINGS LIST Banco do Brasil S.A. BBB-/Stable/-- Rating Assigned Perpetual, noncumulative junior subordinated bonds BB- BANCO DO BRASIL: Moody's Rates USD-Denominated Securities Ba2(hyb) ------------------------------------------------------------------ Moody's Investors Service has assigned a Ba2 (hyb) rating to the proposed USD-denominated non-cumulative, non-convertible non- viability perpetual capital securities to be issued by Banco do Brasil S.A. through its Grand Cayman branch (BB Cayman). The outlook on the rating is negative. The capital securities are Basel III-compliant, and the terms and conditions have been defined with the purpose of considering the instrument as Additional Tier 1 capital. The Ba2 (hyb) rating is subject to receipt of final documentation, the terms and conditions of which are not expected to change in any material way from the draft documents that Moody's has reviewed. The following rating was assigned to Banco do Brasil Cayman Branch non-viability perpetual capital securities: Preferred Non-cumulative foreign currency rating: Ba2 (hyb), outlook negative Ratings Rationale The assigned Ba2 (hyb) rating is positioned three notches below the baa2 adjusted baseline credit assessment (BCA) of Banco do Brasil S.A. (BB), in line with Moody's standard notching guidance for non-cumulative preferred securities with a full or partial principal write-down triggered at or close to the point of non- viability. The three-notch difference from the adjusted BCA captures the probability of impairment associated with non- cumulative coupon suspension, which could happen before the bank reaches the point of non-viability, as well as the probability of a bank-wide failure. Under the terms of the securities, the principal will be written down in full in the event that BB's common equity Tier 1 capital ratio falls below 5.125%; or if a decision is made to make a public sector capital injection -- or equivalent support -- with the purpose of maintaining the bank viable as a going concern; or if the Central Bank makes a discretionary evaluation, determining that a write-down is necessary to maintain the bank as a going concern. The securities also include a mandatory coupon skip mechanism, which is non-cumulative, if the bank does not have sufficient distributable profits and accumulated profit reserves; or if the bank is subject to a default and/or the regulators' imposed restrictions; or if coupon payment results in capital ratios falling below regulatory requirements. The securities (i) will be subordinated in rights and claims to BB's senior liabilities, (ii) will rank pari passu with all other parity liabilities and (iii) will be senior to Common Equity Tier 1 Capital. The last rating action on BB and BB Cayman was on 9th September 2014 when Moody's affirmed the banks' long-term global and foreign local currency deposits, senior unsecured and subordinated debt ratings and changed the outlook on all these ratings to negative from stable. The change in outlook to negative followed the change in outlook on Brazil's Baa2 sovereign rating. The principal methodology used in this rating was Global Banks published in July 2014. Banco do Brasil S.A. is headquartered in Brasilia, Brazil and had total consolidated assets of BRL1,401.1 billion (USD635.7 billion) and equity of BRL71.8 billion (USD32.6 billion) as of June 30 2014. OGX PETROLEO: Owner Faces New Charges in Brazil ----------------------------------------------- Luciana Magalhaes at The Wall Street Journal reports that prosecutors in Sao Paulo filed new criminal charges against Brazilian businessman Eike Batista accusing him of financial crimes and for the first time charged seven former executives of his troubled oil company. The charges, filed late Sept. 23, were the third set against Mr. Batista in recent weeks. The most-recent charges accuse him and the former executives of inducing "thousands of investors to error by announcing false information" about the potential of petroleum reserves in Mr. Batista's oil company, formerly known as OGX Petroleo e Gas Participacoes SA, according to The Wall Street Journal. Once the richest person in Brazil, Mr. Batista had to sell assets and lost most of his fortune after OGX failed to meet targets. His wealth declined to less than US$1 billion at the beginning of this year from more than US$30 billion in 2012, the WSJ discloses. Mr. Batista recently said that his debts exceed his assets by around US$1 billion, the report relates. OGX filed for bankruptcy protection last year in Brazil. OGX investors lost an estimated BRL14.4 billion (US$5.97 billion) between 2010 and 2013, according to the federal prosecutor in Sao Paulo, the WSJ notes. Prosecutors accused Mr. Batista and the former executives of misrepresentation, inducing investors to error and forming a conspiracy, notes WSJ. If convicted, Mr. Batista could face between four and/ 14 years in prison. The other executives, if convicted, could face up to 22 years in prison, according to prosecutors, the report discloses. Federal prosecutors in Rio de Janeiro earlier this month charged Mr. Batista with manipulating financial markets by claiming to be ready to invest as much as US$1 billion in OGX but never putting in the money, says the WSJ report. The prosecutors also charged Mr. Batista with taking advantage of privileged information more than once last year when selling shares of OGX, WSJ relays. Mr. Batista's lawyer, Sergio Bermudes, has said the allegations were untrue. Mr. Bermudes said the criminal charges filed Sept. 23 are similar to ones filed before, the report notes. The WSJ relates that Sao Paulo federal prosecutor Karen Louise Jeanette Kahn said that between 2009 and 2013, OGX made 55 public statements that generated strong demand for its shares on the Sao Paulo stock exchange. But those projections were based on untrue data about the capacity of the company's oil reserves, Ms. Kahn said in a prepared statement obtained by WSJ. Studies commissioned by the company since 2011 have said the areas were economically unfeasible because of high operating costs or the lack of technology to exploit them, the prosecutor said, notes the report. "Rather than disclose the result to the market, Eike and directors sought to maintain the growing interest of investors to buy shares of OGX," the prosecutor's office said, WSJ discloses. The report relays that Ms. Kahn said recently that charges against Mr. Batista are partly an attempt to compensate investors but that not all the damage can be undone. "We do not produce magic solutions and will not be able to resolve the harm that I believe was created and that hit the credibility of the financial market, the capital markets and the Brazilian state," she said in a recent interview with the WSJ. Ms. Khan charged Mr. Batista with illegally profiting from insider trading related to his shipbuilding firm, OSX Brasil, the WSJ notes. If convicted, Mr. Batista could face five years in prison and a fine of about US$11 million. Paulo Mendon‡a, a former chief executive of OGX, was one of the seven executives charged. About OGX Petroleo Based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, OGX Petroleo e Gas Participacoes S.A., now known as Oleo e Gas, is an independent exploration and production company with operations in Latin America. OGX filed for bankruptcy in a business tribunal in Rio de Janeiro on Oct. 30, 2013, case number 0377620-56.2013.8.19.0001. The bankruptcy filing puts US$3.6 billion of dollar bonds into default in the largest corporate debt debacle on record in Latin America. The filing by the oil company that transformed Eike Batista into Brazil's richest man followed a 16-month decline that wiped out more than US$30 billion of his personal fortune. The filing, which in Brazil is called a judicial recovery, follows months of negotiations to restructure the dollar bonds, in which OGX sought to convert debt to equity and secure as much as US$500 million in new funds. OGX said Oct. 29, 2013 that the talks concluded without an agreement. ========================== C A Y M A N I S L A N D S ========================== ANDIVI INVESTMENTS: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 -------------------------------------------------------- The creditors of Andivi Investments Limited are required to file their proofs of debt by Oct. 8, 2014, to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company commenced wind-up proceedings on July 24, 2014. The company's liquidator is: Steering Group S.A. Telephone: +44 1534 282276/ +41 22 319 01 65 Facsimile: +44 1534 282400 13, Quai de I'lle CH-1211, Geneva 11 Switzerland CONOCOPHILLIPS KARA: Placed Under Voluntary Wind-Up --------------------------------------------------- On Aug. 18, 2014, the shareholders of Conocophillips Kara Sea Ventures Ltd. resolved to voluntarily wind up the company's operations. Creditors are required to file their proofs of debt to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company's liquidator is: Trident Liquidators (Cayman) Ltd c/o Eva Moore Telephone: (345) 949 0880 Facsimile: (345) 949 0881 One Capital Place, 4th Floor P.O. Box 847, George Town Grand Cayman KY1-1103 Cayman Islands CONTROL LIMITED: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 9 ----------------------------------------------------- The creditors of Control Limited are required to file their proofs of debt by Oct. 9, 2014, to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company commenced wind-up proceedings on Aug. 28, 2014. The company's liquidator is: Eagle Holdings Ltd. c/o Barclays Private Bank & Trust (Cayman) Limited FirstCaribbean House, 4th Floor P.O. Box 487 Grand Cayman KY1-1106 Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 949-7128 EVEREST TRADING: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 ----------------------------------------------------- The creditors of Everest Trading SPC are required to file their proofs of debt by Oct. 8, 2014, to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company commenced liquidation proceedings on Aug. 28, 2014. The company's liquidator is: DMS Corporate Services Ltd c/o Nicola Cowan Telephone: (345) 946 7665 Facsimile: (345) 949 2877 dms House, 2nd Floor P.O. Box 1344 Grand Cayman KY1-1108 Cayman Islands FOREST CAYCO: Commences Liquidation Proceedings ----------------------------------------------- On Aug. 21, 2014, the sole shareholder of Forest Cayco Subtopco resolved to voluntarily liquidate the company's business. Creditors are required to file their proofs of debt to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company's liquidator is: Anthony Beovich c/o The Blackstone Group 345 Park Avenue, 31st Floor New York, New York 10154 United States of America Telephone: +1 (212) 583 5877 HEMIJI FUND: Commences Liquidation Proceedings ---------------------------------------------- On Aug. 27, 2014, the shareholders of HEMIJI Fund resolved to voluntarily liquidate the company's business. Creditors are required to file their proofs of debt to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company's liquidator is: Sarah-Jane Leonard Landmark Square, West Bay Road P.O. Box 775 Grand Cayman KY1-9006 e-mail: matt.mulry@dilloneustace.ie JOHNSTON RE: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 ------------------------------------------------- The creditors of Johnston Re Limited are required to file their proofs of debt by Oct. 8, 2014, to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company commenced liquidation proceedings on Aug. 20, 2014. The company's liquidator is: Yohann Regnard Dena Thompson P.O. Box 10233 171 Elgin Avenue Willow House, 3rd Floor Grand Cayman Cayman Islands Telephone: 914-2266/ 949-5263 Facsimile: 949-6021 NOBLE SOVEREIGN: S&P Rates $1BB Floating-Rate Notes 'B+' -------------------------------------------------------- Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'B+' credit rating to Noble Sovereign Funding I Ltd.'s series 1 $1.0 billion floating-rate notes. At closing, Noble Sovereign Funding I issued the series 1 notes and used the proceeds to fund the purchase of a loan to Empresa Publica de Hidrocarburos del Ecuador, EP Petroecuador. The loan benefits from a guarantee provided by the Republic of Ecuador. The issuer -- a special-purpose entity (SPE) established in the Cayman Islands -- will pass through to its noteholders any interest and redemption payments that it receives from the underlying loan. The key risk for the repack notes is the credit risk of the Republic of Ecuador as the guarantor of the underlying loan. S&P has therefore weak-linked its 'B+' long-term rating on the Republic of Ecuador to its 'B+' rating on Noble Sovereign Funding I's series 1 notes, which is in line with S&P's global criteria for rating repackaged securities. The rating assigned to Noble Sovereign Funding I's series 1 notes also reflects S&P's assessment of: -- The transaction's legal structure, which is bankruptcy remote in accordance with its legal criteria. -- The transaction's compliance with S&P's multiple-use SPE criteria. -- The transaction's reliance on cash flows from the Republic of Ecuador, as guarantor on the underlying loan, to pay interest and principal on the notes. -- The guarantee's compliance with our guarantee criteria. -- The maximum achievable rating that can be supported by The Bank of New York Mellon S.A./N.V. (London Branch), as custodian, is 'AA-' as the documented replacement language does not fully comply with S&P's current counterparty criteria. STANDARD & POOR'S 17G-7 DISCLOSURE REPORT SEC Rule 17g-7 requires an NRSRO, for any report accompanying a credit rating relating to an asset-backed security as defined in the Rule, to include a description of the representations, warranties, and enforcement mechanisms available to investors and a description of how they differ from the representations, warranties, and enforcement mechanisms in issuances of similar securities. There is no Standard & Poor's 17g-7 Disclosure Report included in this credit rating report because, in S&P's view, there are no representations, warranties, and enforcement mechanisms available to investors. VITALITY RE: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 8 ------------------------------------------------- The creditors of Vitality Re Limited are required to file their proofs of debt by Oct. 8, 2014, to be included in the company's dividend distribution. The company commenced liquidation proceedings on Aug. 20, 2014. The company's liquidator is: Yohann Regnard Dena Thompson P.O. Box 10233 171 Elgin Avenue Willow House, 3rd Floor Grand Cayman Cayman Islands Telephone: 914-2266/ 949-5263 Facsimile: 949-6021 WIMBLEDON FINANCING: Creditors to Hold Meeting on Sept. 30 ---------------------------------------------------------- Wimbledon Financing Master Fund Ltd, which is in official liquidation, will hold a meeting for its creditors on Sept. 30, 2014, at 9:00 a.m. The company's liquidator is: Christopher D. Johnson c/o Chris Johnson Associates Ltd P.O. Box 2499 Elizabethan Square, Shedden Road Grand Cayman KY1-1104 Cayman Islands Telephone: +1 (345) 946 0820 WIMBLEDON FINANCING MASTER: Creditors to Hold Meeting on Sept. 30 ----------------------------------------------------------------- Wimbledon Financing Master Fund Ltd, which is in official liquidation, will hold a meeting for its creditors on Sept. 30, 2014, at 10:30 a.m. The company's liquidator is: Christopher D. Johnson c/o Chris Johnson Associates Ltd P.O. Box 2499 Elizabethan Square, Shedden Road Grand Cayman KY1-1104 Cayman Islands Telephone: +1 (345) 946 0820 ============= J A M A I C A ============= ALCOA INC: Optimistic About Aluminum Price ------------------------------------------ RJR News reports that Alcoa Inc., which is moving to sell its stake in Jamalco, is depending on an aluminum deficit to help its stock price continue the nearly 50-percent increase it's seen so far this year. Prices for the metal have risen about 10 per cent in 2014, and analysts predict a global aluminum deficit will correct years of market saturation, according to RJR News. The report notes that aluminum's good fortune has come as the automobile market has turned its attention to utilizing the light metal for producing cars. Alcoa Inc., which accounts for 7% of the world's aluminum output, has placed an emphasis on cutting production to help offset the surplus, the report relates. The report discloses that news came in June that Alcoa will pull out of Jamaica within two years and sell its mining interests to Noble Group. Alcoa Inc. has a 55 per cent stake in Jamalco, with the remaining 45 per cent held by the Government through its holding company Clarendon Alumina Production. The plant is managed by Alcoa. Alcoa Inc. produces and manages primary aluminum, fabricated aluminum, and alumina. The company operates in four segments: Alumina, Primary Metals, Global Rolled Products, and Engineered Products and Solutions. * * * As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on Sept. 22, 2014, Fitch Ratings has assigned a 'BB+' rating to Alcoa Inc.'s issuance of approximately US$1 billion in senior notes due 2024. The Rating Outlook is Stable. ======= P E R U ======= PERU: Economy to Grow Less Than Forecast, Velarde Says ------------------------------------------------------ Anatoly Kurmanaev at Bloomberg News reports that Peru's economy will expand less than policy makers forecast this year, central bank President Julio Velarde said, after falling metal prices hurt investment. The economy will grow close to 3.5 percent, down from the 4 percent to 4.2 percent forecast by the central bank and government, respectively, Bank President Velarde said, according to Bloomberg News. "The performance of the primary sectors has not been impressive," Bloomberg News quoted Bank President Velarde as saying. "The recent slowdown indicates that growth will be closer to 3.5 percent," Bank President Velarde said. President Ollanta Humala told Bloomberg's Latin America Forum in New York that the government is drafting a plan to "re-activate" growth, including streamlining permits for businesses to operate and increased spending on infrastructure, Bloomberg News discloses. "We had some problems in the first half of the year, but the hard moment has passed," President Humala said in a separate interview with Bloomberg Television on Sept. 22. "We are re-inflating the economy to regain the five-percent growth," President Humala added. The government said in July it will tap a budget surplus to increase spending by the equivalent of 1.6 percent of gross domestic product to revive South America's fastest growing economy of the last decade, Bloomberg News notes. The central bank cut its overnight rate on Sept. 11 for the third time in a year to 3.5 percent, Bloomberg News relates. *********** Monday's edition of the TCR-LA delivers a list of indicative prices for bond issues that reportedly trade well below par. Prices are obtained by TCR-LA editors from a variety of outside sources during the prior week we think are reliable. Those sources may not, however, be complete or accurate. The Monday Bond Pricing table is compiled on the Friday prior to publication. Prices reported are not intended to reflect actual trades. Prices for actual trades are probably different. Our objective is to share information, not make markets in publicly traded securities. Nothing in the TCR-LA constitutes an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any security of any kind. It is likely that some entity affiliated with a TCR-LA editor holds some position in the issuers' public debt and equity securities about which we report. Tuesday's edition of the TCR-LA features a list of companies with insolvent balance sheets obtained by our editors based on the latest balance sheets publicly available a day prior to publication. At first glance, this list may look like the definitive compilation of stocks that are ideal to sell short. Don't be fooled. Assets, for example, reported at historical cost net of depreciation may understate the true value of a firm's assets. A company may establish reserves on its balance sheet for liabilities that may never materialize. The prices at which equity securities trade in public market are determined by more than a balance sheet solvency test. Submissions about insolvency-related conferences are encouraged. Send announcements to conferences@bankrupt.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-Latin America is a daily newsletter co-published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, D.C., USA, Marites O. Claro, Joy A. Agravante, Rousel Elaine T. Fernandez, Valerie U. Pascual, Julie Anne L. Toledo, and Peter A. Chapman, Editors. Copyright 2014. All rights reserved. ISSN 1529-2746. 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 Latin America subscription rate is US$775 per half-year, delivered via e-mail. Additional e-mail subscriptions for members of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription or balance thereof are US$25 each. For subscription information, contact Peter A. Chapman at 215-945-7000 or Nina Novak at 202-241-8200. * * * End of Transmission * * *