APP Singapore assets valued at US$20m-$30m

APP Singapore assets valued at US$20m-$30m

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones): Financially-troubled Asia Pulp & Paper Co., which has most of its operations in Indonesia and China, has Singaporean assets worth around US$20 million to US$30 million, according to a research report published this week by UBS Warburg and seen by Dow Jones Newswires Tuesday.

APP, which has total debts and obligations of $12 billion, announced a debt standstill on March 12, saying it was unable to make any payments of interest and principal. The company, which is listed in New York but headquartered in Singapore, is now planning a debt restructuring.

But several of APP's creditors had already started legal action against the company in Singapore earlier this year in an attempt to recover money owed to them.

Last week, Singapore's High Court found in favor of French bank Credit Lyonnais, which is owed $1.9 million.

Several other creditors, including ABN-Amro, Bank of East Asia, and Union de Banques Arabes et Francaises have also filed writs against APP, with ABN-Amro by far the biggest creditor claiming $31 million.

UBS Warburg's analysts reckon it's "highly possible" that APP's Singaporean assets could be seized, saying "the ruling by the Singaporean courts could set the precedent for other lawsuits against APP and set the ball rolling for possible seizure of assets."

UBS Warburg says that APP owns 64 percent of Singapore-listed Nippecraft, and values that holding at around $8 million.

The research report says APP also owns 75 percent of unlisted PaperBox Industries, 51 percent of Toprint Computer Supplies, and 90 percent of APP Printing. UBS Warburg estimates that these other Singaporean companies are valued at between $10 million and $20 million.