Intelsat creditors attack bankruptcy prepare, say board conflicted

A trader passes by a screen displaying the tickers symbols for Bristol-Myers Squibb and Intelsat, Ltd. on the ground at the New York Inventory Exchange, April 25, 2013. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

(Reuters) – Intelsat SA is struggling with increasing opposition to its proposed reorganization plan as certain lenders and shareholders accuse the satellite communications company of caving to the demands of a single favored creditor group and failing to perform an impartial probe into pre-personal bankruptcy transactions.

In court papers filed on Monday, a group of noteholders urged U.S. Personal bankruptcy Decide Keith Phillips in Richmond, Virginia to reject the approach, expressing it improperly shifts most of the company’s price to a person set of lenders and institutional shareholders, such as hedge fund Appaloosa, at the cost of other folks.

The system, if approved, would reduce Intelsat’s personal debt from $15 billion to $7 billion and hand control of the business around to unsecured bondholders of subsidiary Intelsat Jackson Holdings SA.

Intelsat filed for individual bankruptcy in Might 2020 to restructure its financial debt as it well prepared to transfer some of its C-band spectrum to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission. In trade, Intelsat is obtaining about $4.9 billion.

The noteholder team also accused administrators that signed off on the system of remaining conflicted and settling certain promises to safeguard them selves from possible liability arising from pre-individual bankruptcy transactions, such as restructuring promotions, decisions relating to the FCC payments and accusations of insider trading. The noteholders allege that the directors agreed to the “favored” creditor group’s calls for following it threatened to sue them individually.

“The [Intelsat] Board was scared into submission,” the team mentioned.

Intelsat competitor SES Americom Inc, which suggests Intelsat owes it $421 million below an agreement to break up the FCC payments, also filed an objection. SES argues that the U.S. device with which it signed the agreement is central to the company’s in general functions and is entitled to much far more than the 4.5% of the FCC payments that it is established to receive below the strategy. A more substantial chunk of the FCC payments would outcome in larger payouts to SES, which claims it is now in line for pennies on the dollar.

SES echoed the noteholder group’s allegations that the administrators creating conclusions about the approach were conflicted.

A little group of fairness holders, whose passions will be wiped out underneath the system, objected to the approach, expressing it ignores alternatives to bring in additional price. The team also challenged the plan’s proposed lawful protections for officers and administrators.

A hearing on the plan is set to start off on Dec. 2.

The case is In re Intelsat SA, U.S. Personal bankruptcy Court, Japanese District of Virginia, No. 20-32299.

For Intelsat: Edward Sassower, Steven Serajeddini and Aparna Yenamandra of Kirkland & Ellis and Michael Condyles, Peter Barrett, Jeremy Williams and Brian Richardson of Kutak Rock

For the noteholder group: Kristopher Hansen, Daniel Fliman,

Sayan Bhattacharyya, Patrick Petrocelli and Isaac Sasson of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan Duane Loft of Boies Schiller Flexner and Jason Gold and Dylan Trache of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

For SES Americom: Orin Snyder, Michael Rosenthal, Brian Lutz, and Christopher Belelieu of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Dennis Lewandowski of Kaufman & Canoles

For the equity team: Harold Kaplan, Mark Hebbeln and Susan Poll Klaessy of Foley & Lardner and David Kovel of Kirby McInerney

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