ZAGREB, February 8, 2018 – Economy Minister Martina Dalić has called on the Temporary Creditors’ Council in the ailing Agrokor conglomerate, to agree on a schedule of activities by the middle of next week so that creditors can vote on proposed settlements as soon as possible and to finalise the emergency administration procedure, the ministry said in a press release on Thursday.
Minister Dalić today met with members of Agrokor’s Temporary Creditors’ Council, representatives of large suppliers, representatives of bond holders from Knighthead Capital Management, representatives of secured creditors from the Zagrebačka Banka and representatives of unsecured creditors from Sberbank of Russia and representatives from the VTB Bank who have the status of observers in the Temporary Creditors’ Council.
She requested a report on activities conducted by the Temporary Creditors’ Council together with the emergency administrator and consultants so that a settlement can be reached with creditors within the deadline set by the Law on Emergency Administration Procedures in Systemically Important Companies.
“The former management in Agrokor brought this company, which has a big impact on Croatia’s economy and that of the region to the verge of bankruptcy, threatening tens of thousands of jobs but also the assets of creditors who lent Agrokor more than 57 billion kuna,” Dalić said, according to the press release. “Under the emergency administration,” she added, “thanks to the efforts of all creditors’ representatives in the Temporary Creditors’ Council, Agrokor’s business has been stabilised and the finalisation of that process awaits us in accordance with legislatively defined deadlines.”
She claimed that all of Agrokor’s creditors, from financial institutions to suppliers, lent significant amounts and that it was important for them and Croatia’s economy overall, to accelerate efforts to reach a fair, just and balanced settlement in order to compensate as much of the loss suffered as possible be and for Agrokor to continue developing its business, create jobs and open new markets.
“Representatives of the new owners, that is, those who you represent, have to take over managing Agrokor as soon as possible and to enable its further operations,” Dalić told the Temporary Creditors’ Council and called on the council to inform all stakeholders of the settlement process in an effort to strengthen the transparency of that process,” the press release concluded.
