HC stays winding-up plea against Wockhardt
23 Mar 2011
The Bombay high court has granted interim relief to Wockhardt Ltd company by staying the admission of a winding-up petition filed by some overseas bondholders.
The court has also asked Wockhardt to deposit Rs115 crore by 3 May, the Indian drug maker said in a regulatory filing. The company has agreed to deposit the amount, it added.
Debt-laden Wockhardt is locked in a tussle with some holders of its foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) over the terms of repayment of certain liabilities that the company failed to meet.
Earlier this month, some bondholders, including an overseas unit of Indian rival Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd and QVT Advisors Pvt Ltd, a Singapore based hedge fund, had filed a petition against the company in the Bombay high court.
The company's appeal against the petition will be heard on 4 May, according to reports.
Wockhardt had failed conclude an arrangement to pay its FCCB holders $110 million as per terms and went into a corporate debt restructuring (CDR) process.
To reduce its debt burden, Wockhardt sold the animal health care division to Vetoquinol, France and divested the business of Esparma GmbH to Mova GmbH.
As at March 2010 (15 months period), Wockhardt's total borrowings stood at Rs4,018 crore.