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French banks take over Bourbon

A court in Marseille has ruled that a group of French banks will take over the assets of the once mighty OSV operator, Bourbon Corporation.

The company has been in a protracted court restructuring for many months.

As of January 2, the firm’s assets will be transferred to a group of creditor banks comprising BNP Paribas, Caisse Régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Alpes Provence, Caisse Régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel de Paris et d’Ile de France, CM-CIC Investissement SCR, Crédit Lyonnais, Natixis and Société Générale. This grouping owns about 75% of Bourbon’s debt.

SPP’s offer proposes to acquire 100% of the assets of Bourbon Corporation and to convert into equity capital a total of 1.7 billion euros worth of debt and liabilities.

The operation will lead to the liquidation of the company and a total loss for its shareholders and bondholders, the company said earlier.

Sam Chambers

Starting out with the Informa Group in 2000 in Hong Kong, Sam Chambers became editor of Maritime Asia magazine as well as East Asia Editor for the world’s oldest newspaper, Lloyd’s List. In 2005 he pursued a freelance career and wrote for a variety of titles including taking on the role of Asia Editor at Seatrade magazine and China correspondent for Supply Chain Asia. His work has also appeared in The Economist, The New York Times, The Sunday Times and The International Herald Tribune.
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