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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
Tuesday, July 31, 2018, Vol. 19, No. 150
Headlines
D O M I N I C A N R E P U B L I C
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: 1H Tax Revenue Tops US$4.5BB, a 10.8% Jump
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: ADIE Says Seaweed Forces Shutdown of Plants
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Glut Prompts Gov't. to Buy Surplus Bananas
J A M A I C A
BARITA INVESTMENTS: Requests Suspension of Trading Shares in Aug
M E X I C O
MEXICO: President-Elect Pledges Major Investment in Energy
P E R U
COSVI: A.M. Best Retains C+ Financial Strength Rating
P U E R T O R I C O
EDUARDO MENDOZA: Proposes $60K Sale of Three Vehicles
SPANISH BROADCASTING: Completes Sale of NY Real Estate for $14M
STONEMOR PARTNERS: Awards Grants of 750,000 Units to CEO Redling
T R I N I D A D & T O B A G O
PETROLEUM CO: Discloses Average Employee Compensation
X X X X X X X X X
LATAM: CDB to Evaluate Work Done in Borrowing Member Countries
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D O M I N I C A N R E P U B L I C
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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: 1H Tax Revenue Tops US$4.5BB, a 10.8% Jump
--------------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that Internal Taxes Director Magin Diaz
said revenue for the Dominican Republic for the first half of the
current year topped RD$223.4 billion (US$4.5 billion), a 10.8%
jump compared with the same period of the previous year, and 99.9%
of expected.
According to Dominican Today, Mr. Diaz said Internal Taxes
implemented one of the largest administrative reforms in its
history to fight tax evasion.
"The impulse given to tax education is part of the set of actions
carried out by the institution that today bear fruit: a sustained
growth of collections that could lead to exceeding the budget goal
for the second year in a row," Dominican Today quotes Mr. Diaz as
saying.
Mr. Diaz spoke during a mass to mark Internal Taxes' 21st
anniversary.
As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on
July 19, 2018, Fitch Ratings assigned a 'BB-' rating to
Dominican Republic's USD1.3 billion bonds, maturing July 2028. The
notes have a coupon of 6%. Proceeds from the issuance will be
used for general purposes of the government, including the partial
financing of the 2018 budget.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: ADIE Says Seaweed Forces Shutdown of Plants
----------------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that Dominican Republic's power companies
grouped in (ADIE) said more than 30 tons of seaweed forced the
shutdown of the Itabo plants to purge the cooling system.
Despite the plants' outage, the power companies said they were
poised to supply 10% more energy than the demand, according to
Dominican Today. "The electricity that was consumed in the system
during this period reached an accumulated value of 75.88 GWh.
Therefore, there was an accumulated reserve of 7.64 GWh," the
companies said, the report relays.
In a statement, ADIE said that despite that the plants are
equipped with mechanism to prevent the entry of seaweed, "the
enormous amount that reaches massively from the Sargasso Sea,
located in the northern Atlantic, forced the interruption of the
operation," the report notes.
As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on
July 19, 2018, Fitch Ratings has assigned a 'BB-' rating to
Dominican Republic's USD1.3 billion bonds, maturing July 2028. The
notes have a coupon of 6%. Proceeds from the issuance will be
used for general purposes of the government, including the partial
financing of the 2018 budget.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Glut Prompts Gov't. to Buy Surplus Bananas
--------------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the Dominican Republic's Minister of
Agriculture Osmar Benitez said the government will buy the surplus
of bananas for around RD$100 million.
Mr. Benitez said 16.4 million bananas will be acquired weekly in
the next 18 weeks, as international demand for the fruit has
fallen and the Dominican Republic has been left with a glut for
the lack of a market, according to Dominican Today.
"We are going to acquire 5.4 million pounds that represent some 17
million bananas weekly, which currently have no market and will be
used to feed low-income families, the military and police
stations, with privilege to those located on the border, in
addition to the government's social plans," said Mr. Benitez in a
press conference, the report notes.
He said the measure seeks to support the banana sector, which has
demanded aid from the government for the collapse of international
prices and the decrease in exports.
The official added that the measure seeks to stabilize supply and
profit growers, the report relays. "It will benefit 1,634
producers, many distributed in 1,815 plantations nationwide," he
added.
As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on
July 19, 2018, Fitch Ratings assigned a 'BB-' rating to
Dominican Republic's USD1.3 billion bonds, maturing July 2028. The
notes have a coupon of 6%. Proceeds from the issuance will be
used for general purposes of the government, including the partial
financing of the 2018 budget.
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J A M A I C A
=============
BARITA INVESTMENTS: Requests Suspension of Trading Shares in Aug
----------------------------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that Barita Investments, which is the subject of
a takeover bid, has asked the Jamaica Stock Exchange to suspend
the trading of its shares for the Aug. 17 to 13 period.
Barita, the report notes, recently informed the Stock Exchange
that Cornerstone Investments made an offer to its shareholders for
100 per cent of its issued shares and that the offer is now open
for acceptance. The closing date is August 16 subject to
Cornerstone extending it, the report adds.
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M E X I C O
===========
MEXICO: President-Elect Pledges Major Investment in Energy
----------------------------------------------------------
EFE News reports that Mexican President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez
Obrador presented a plan to invest MXN304 billion (US$16.3
billion) to expand energy output, with most of the sum earmarked
for state oil company Pemex.
The equivalent of $4 billion will go toward drilling new wells
with the aim of increasing oil production from the current level
of 1.9 million barrels per day to 2.5 million bpd by the end of
2020, the future head of state told reporters outside his
transition office in Mexico City, according to EFE News.
"In 14 years, we have lost 1.5 million bpd," he said, referring to
an ongoing decline in crude output, the report notes. "That's why
we're going to intervene in an urgent way," he added.
The second element of the plan calls for spending some $2.6
billion to ensure that Mexico's six existing oil refineries are
operating at 100 percent of capacity within two years, the report
relays.
Another $8.57 billion is to be invested in building a seventh
refinery at Dos Bocas, a Gulf coast port in the southeastern state
of Tabasco, Lopez Obrador said, the report notes.
"With the new refinery and the rehabilitation of the others, we
will keep the campaign promise we made that by the midpoint of the
six-year term, we will stop buying gasoline from abroad and we
will lower the prices of fuels," he said, the report says.
Apart from investment in the oil sector, the initiative assigns
around $1 billion to increasing electricity output by "modernizing
the hydroelectric plants," the leftist president-elect said, the
report adds.
=======
P E R U
=======
COSVI: A.M. Best Retains C+ Financial Strength Rating
-----------------------------------------------------
A.M. Best has commented that the under review with negative
implications status, the Financial Strength Rating of C+
(Marginal) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of "b-" of
Cooperativa de Seguros de Vida de Puerto Rico (COSVI) (San Juan,
Puerto Rico) remain unchanged.
This comment reflects A.M. Best's ongoing concerns over the future
of COSVI's capital strength and operating efficiency. COSVI's
Credit Ratings (ratings) were placed under review with negative
implications on April 4, 2018 over concerns about COSVI's exposure
to Puerto Rico bonds and the volatility that represented to
COSVI's absolute or risk-adjusted capital at year-end 2017. At
that time, A.M. Best indicated the ratings would remain under
review until A.M. Best received COSVI's 2017 annual statement and
conducted conversations with the company's management team
regarding the results contained in the filing.
Since that last rating action, COSVI has submitted its 2017
statutory annual and first-quarter 2018 statements. However, the
company revised the cash flow testing results for year-end 2017.
As indicated in COSVI's year-end statutory statement, the
depressed market value of Puerto Rico securities at Dec. 31, 2017
would require the company to post additional reserves under the
cash flow testing analysis, as its invested asset values and
returns on investment would not be able to satisfy the guarantees
on the Segregated Asset Plan (SAP) annuity block of business. At
this point, the company is working with the Office of the
Commissioner of Insurance of Puerto Rico to satisfy and execute
initiatives discussed over the past few months.
Due to the drastic decline in market value of Puerto Rico-
domiciled bonds at year-end 2017, and the subsequent recovery of
the value of these domestic securities through May 2018, COSVI
petitioned the commissioner's office to make an allowance and
recognize the increased value of Puerto Rico bond obligations.
Concurrently, COSVI has sold two large tranches of these bonds in
2018 at a reduced cost, eliminating a large unrealized loss that
caused the unfavorable outcomes from the cash flow test, while
recognizing a substantially smaller realized loss. Consequently,
the sale of the at-risk securities rendered the cause of the
unfavorable cash flow testing inapplicable.
As the company works through the many initiatives, A.M. Best
remains concerned that some of the various alternatives chosen may
have further adverse effects on COSVI's capital strength and
operating efficiency. A.M. Best will continue to monitor the
developments at COSVI closely and will need to review the final
cash flow testing results and audit opinion in order to determine
if there is an impending need for negative rating action going
forward in the near-to-medium term.
======================
P U E R T O R I C O
======================
EDUARDO MENDOZA: Proposes $60K Sale of Three Vehicles
-----------------------------------------------------
E. Mendoza Co., Inc., and Condado 2, LLC, ask the U.S. Bankruptcy
Court for the District of Puerto Rico to authorize the sale of the
following vehicles: (i) white 2008 Mercedes Benz, VIN
WDDNG71X78A192308, plate number HF1455; (ii) White 2008 Mercedes
Benz, VIN WDDNG71X78A192308, plate number HEL481; and (iii) black
2010 Chevrolet Corvette, VIN 1G1YW2DW8A5109363, plate number
HUC406, using the values established in the market for the sale
price.
On Dec. 30, 2016, the Debtor listed in Amended Schedule A/B the
Vehicles. Although in the Amended Schedule A/B the Debtor
disclosed that two of these Vehicles were leased with Popular
Leasing, the Debtor now informs that it has since obtained a valid
ownership title to these Vehicles and they are not currently under
any lease agreement. The Debtor attaches as Exhibit 1A - 1C the
three valid current vehicle licenses.
Condado is a creditor with secured claims in the amounts of
$2,937,960 and $656,496 as per Proof of Claims Nos. 12-1 and 13-2,
respectively, which have not been objected and are deemed allowed.
These loans are guaranteed by the Debtor's principals. As a
result of an agreement with the Debtor's principals for the
benefit of the case and to service Condado's aforementioned
secured loans, Condado consents the sale of the Vehicles to fund
the Plan of Reorganization and/or purchase inventory and/or pay
part of the debt service of the secured debt.
The Debtor will sell the Vehicles using the values established in
the market (e.g. blue book value) for the sale price. According
to the values established in the Blue Book values, the Debtor
reasonably understands that it will obtain the approximate amount
of $60,000 in the sale of the three Vehicles. Pursuant to the
market value examined, the values are as follows: Mercedes Benz
S550 2018 - $20,990; Mercedes Benz C300 2008 - $11,999; and
Chevrolet Corvette 2010 - $26,999.
The Debtor submits that from the proceeds obtained from the sale
of the Vehicles it will use 50% for the purchase of inventory and
the remaining 50% will be distributed to service Condado's secured
loans. In addition, the Debtor must also become current with the
outstanding cash collateral protection payments for the months of
April and May 2018.
The transfer of the Vehicles will be free and clear of liens.
The Debtor will make payments on Condado's secured claims and any
amounts owed over the secured claims will be partially paid from
the proceeds of the sale. The remaining proceeds from the sale of
the property will be used as described.
Because the closing agreed by Condado with the Debtor's principals
to enhance the Debtor's reorganization (also considering Condado's
secured loans), the Parties also ask the Court to shorten the
objection period to seven days. The parties will file a separate
motion to that effect.
About Eduardo Mendoza Corporation
Eduardo Mendoza Corporation filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition
(Bankr. D.P.R. Case No. 16-06672) on Aug. 22, 2016. In the
petition signed by Mara Fernandez Torres, secretary, the Debtor
estimated assets at $0 to $50,000 and liabilities at $100,001 to
$500,000 at the time of the filing. The Debtor is represented by
Nelson Robles Diaz, Esq., at the Nelson Robles Diaz Law Offices,
PSC.
SPANISH BROADCASTING: Completes Sale of NY Real Estate for $14M
---------------------------------------------------------------
Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc., closed on the sale of its New
York City real estate for $14 million in cash. The property was
purchased in 1988 for $4 million.
SBS has relocated its operations to two new sites in Manhattan,
offering a more expansive and efficient area for its sales and
marketing operations, as well as new state-of-the-art studios for
over-the-air and digital audio/video streaming of its daily
content to the various SBS distribution platforms.
Proceeds from the sale will be utilized to redeem the Company's
12.5% Senior Notes.
About Spanish Broadcasting
Based in Miami, Florida, Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc.
(OTCMKTS:SBSAA) -- http://www.spanishbroadcasting.com/-- owns and
operates 17 radio stations located in the top U.S. Hispanic
markets of New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, San Francisco
and Puerto Rico, airing the Spanish Tropical, Regional Mexican,
Spanish Adult Contemporary, Top 40 and Latin Rhythmic format
genres. SBS also operates AIRE Radio Networks, a national radio
platform which creates, distributes and markets leading Spanish-
language radio programming to over 250 affiliated stations
reaching 94% of the U.S. Hispanic audience. SBS also owns MegaTV,
a television operation with over-the-air, cable and satellite
distribution and affiliates throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
SBS also produces live concerts and events and owns multiple
bilingual websites, including www.LaMusica.com, an online
destination and mobile app providing content related to Latin
music, entertainment, news and culture.
The report from the Company's independent accounting firm Crowe
Horwath LLP, the Company's auditor since 2013, on the consolidated
financial statements for the year ended Dec. 31, 2017, includes an
explanatory paragraph stating that the 12.5% Senior Secured Notes
had a maturity date of April 15, 2017. Cash from operations or
the sale of assets was not sufficient to repay the notes when they
became due. In addition, for the year ended Dec. 31, 2017, the
Company had a working capital deficiency and negative cash flows
from operations. These factors raise substantial doubt about its
ability to continue as a going concern.
Spanish Broadcasting reported net income of $19.62 million for the
year ended Dec. 31, 2017, compared to a net loss of $16.34 million
for the year ended Dec. 31, 2016. As of March 31, 2018, Spanish
Broadcasting had $435.59 million in total assets, $534.85 million
in total liabilities and a total stockholders' deficit of $99.26
million.
* * *
In May 2017, S&P Global Ratings withdrew its 'D' corporate credit
rating and issue-level ratings on Spanish Broadcasting System.
"We withdrew the ratings because we were unlikely to raise them
from 'D', based on SBS' ongoing plans to restructure its debt,"
said S&P Global Ratings' credit analyst Scott Zari. S&P had
downgraded SBS to 'D' on April 21, 2017, following the company's
announcement that it didn't repay its $275 million 12.5% senior
secured notes that were due April 15, 2017, as reported by the TCR
on May 25, 2017.
In April 2017, Moody's Investors Service downgraded SBS's
corporate family rating to 'Ca' from 'Caa2'. SBS's 'Ca' corporate
family rating reflects an elevated expected loss rate following
the default under the company's 12.5% senior secured notes due
April 2017, said Moody's.
STONEMOR PARTNERS: Awards Grants of 750,000 Units to CEO Redling
----------------------------------------------------------------
Joseph M. Redling commenced service as the president and chief
executive officer and a director of StoneMor GP LLC, the general
partner of StoneMor Partners L.P., on July 18, 2018, pursuant to
the terms of his employment agreement dated June 29, 2018.
StoneMor GP LLC and Mr. Redling have entered into an executive
restricted unit agreement as contemplated by his Employment
Agreement, pursuant to which Mr. Redling was awarded a grant of
750,000 restricted common units of the Partnership. The agreement
provides, among other things, that:
* the Restricted Units will vest in quarterly installments over
a four year period commencing on the three month anniversary
of the Agreement Date, provided that all Restricted Units
will become fully vested as of the date of a "Change in
Control" (as such term is defined in the Restricted Unit
Agreement);
* certificates for Restricted Units will be issued to Mr.
Redling upon the vesting of any Restricted Units, subject to
the provisions of the LTIP and further subject to Mr. Redling
paying, or making suitable arrangements to pay, all
applicable taxes;
* with respect to the Restricted Units that vest in the first
installment or on any date on which the Partnership has not
filed all required reports under Section 13(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, other than Form
8-K Reports, Mr. Redling may satisfy his tax withholding
obligations by having the Partnership withhold Restricted
Units with a fair market value equal to those obligations;
* unvested Restricted Units will be entitled to receive
distributions made by the Partnership to holders of the
Partnership's common units, payment of which will be payable
to Mr. Redling on or promptly following the date on which the
distributions are otherwise paid to the holders of common
units;
* all unvested Restricted Units are subject to forfeiture in
the event of the termination of Mr. Redling's employment
(whether voluntary or involuntary and regardless of the reason
for the termination, or for no reason whatsoever) with
StoneMor GP or its affiliates, unless Mr. Redling's
employment is on that date transferred to StoneMor GP or
another of its affiliates; and
* all Restricted Units and related distributions with respect
thereto are subject to clawback under any clawback policies
which are adopted by the Compensation Committee, as amended
from time to time, including, but not limited to, clawback
listing requirements of the New York Stock Exchange imposed
by Securities and Exchange Commission rules adopted pursuant
to Section 954 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and
Consumer Protection Act of 2010.
About StoneMor Partners
StoneMor Partners L.P., headquartered in Trevose, Pennsylvania --
http://www.stonemor.com/-- is an owner and operator of cemeteries
and funeral homes in the United States, with 322 cemeteries and 93
funeral homes in 27 states and Puerto Rico. StoneMor is the only
publicly traded death care company structured as a partnership.
StoneMor's cemetery products and services, which are sold on both
a pre-need (before death) and at-need (at death) basis, include:
burial lots, lawn and mausoleum crypts, burial vaults, caskets,
memorials, and all services which provide for the installation of
this merchandise.
Stonemor reported a net loss of $75.15 million on $338.22 million
of total revenues for the year ended Dec. 31, 2017, compared to a
net loss of $30.48 million on $326.23 million of total revenues
for the year ended Dec. 31, 2016. As of Dec. 31, 2017, Stonemor
had $1.75 billion in total assets, $1.66 billion in total
liabilities and $91.69 million in total partners' capital.
* * *
In April 2018, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'CCC+' corporate
credit rating on StoneMor Partners L.P. S&P said, "The rating
affirmation reflects our expectation that the company can generate
operating cash flow of approximately $25 million in 2018 to
support operating needs for at least another year."
================================
T R I N I D A D & T O B A G O
================================
PETROLEUM CO: Discloses Average Employee Compensation
-----------------------------------------------------
Trinidad Express reports that Petroleum Co. of Trinidad & Tobago
Ltd (Petrotrin) is insisting that average employee costs account
for more than 50 per cent of the state-owned energy company's
total operating costs.
In a whole-page advertisement published in the newspapers,
Petrotrin supported statistics presented by its chairman, Wilfred
Espinet, at a symposium sponsored by the Lloyd Best Institute of
the West Indies, entitled "Meeting the Petrotrin Challenge"
earlier this month, according to Trinidad Express.
The heavily indebted company -- described by Prime Minister Keith
Rowley as "something of a ward of the Treasury" in a January 2017
address -- said that as at June 30, 2018, on an annualized basis,
Petrotrin spent $2.191 billion on salaries and wages and its
operating costs were $4.149 billion, the report notes. That means
average employee costs accounted for 52.8 per cent of operating
costs, the company said, the report adds.
As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on
May 3, 2018, S&P Global Ratings revised its outlook on Petroleum
Co. of Trinidad & Tobago Ltd (Petrotrin) to negative from stable.
S&P said, "We also affirmed our 'BB' long-term corporate credit
and senior unsecured debt ratings on the company. Additionally,
we're keeping its SACP unchanged at 'b-'."
=================
X X X X X X X X X
=================
LATAM: CDB to Evaluate Work Done in Borrowing Member Countries
--------------------------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) is
preparing to conduct an evaluation of the work it did in up to
eleven of its Borrowing Member Countries between 2005 and 2017.
The countries make up the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States
(OECS) and Overseas Dependent Territories (ODT), according to RJR
News.
The Country Strategy and Program Evaluation is scheduled for
completion by mid-2019, and is a tool used by multilateral
development banks to assess and interpret past performance, and
provide forward-looking conclusions and recommendations, the
report relays.
The lessons and recommendations from the evaluation will be used
to improve the bank's country strategies and program performance
in the targeted countries -- Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda,
British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada,
Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, and the Turks and Caicos Islands, the report adds.
***********
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, Julie Anne L. Toledo, Ivy B. Magdadaro, and Peter A.
Chapman, Editors.
Copyright 2018. 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.
.
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