24 Mar 2014 07:40
NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN, INTO OR FROM, ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OF SUCH JURISDICTION.
24 MARCH 2014
UPDATE ON DISCUSSIONS WITH LENDERS
Further to the announcement made on 27 January 2014, the Board of Albemarle & Bond Holdings plc (the "Board") ("Albemarle" or the "Company") has been exploring alternative options to maximise value for all stakeholders. Over the weekend, the Board was informed by the Company's lenders that they will not be able to support the management turnaround plan for the business. The Board is continuing to work with the Company's lenders on possible alternative options for stakeholders. However, the Board of Albemarle now believes that these remaining options open to the Company, which could include the sale of the business at a level below the current level of financial indebtedness, provide no realistic prospect of any value being attributable to the Company's ordinary shares.As already announced, the Company's current covenant deferral agreement expires on 31 March 2014. The Company's lenders have indicated they may be willing to extend this agreement in certain circumstances, but if they do not then the Company could be required to repay its outstanding loan facilities and although the company has sufficient cash headroom to meet current trading requirements, if the entire debt facility became repayable it would not be able to meet this liability.
Accordingly the Company has requested its shares be suspended from trading on AIM pending clarification of the Company's financial position.
For further information:
MHP Communications:
Reg Hoare 0203 128 8100
Katie Hunt
Simon Hockridge
Canaccord Genuity Limited:
NOMAD and broker Financial adviser
Piers Coombs 0207 523 8000 Lawrence Guthrie 0207 665 4642
Bruce Garrow 0207 523 8000 Shaun Holmes 0207 665 4682
Publication on Website
A copy of this announcement will be made available at www.albemarlebondplc.com
Canaccord Genuity Limited ("Canaccord"), which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority, is acting exclusively for Albemarle & Bond Holdings plc (as financial adviser, nominated adviser and broker) and no one else in connection with the matters referred to in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than for Albemarle & Bond Holdings plc for providing the protections afforded to clients of Canaccord nor for providing advice in relation to the matters referred to in this announcement.