Norwegian Air expects its dispute with Boeing over the cancellation of orders for 97 aircraft to be decided in U.S. legal proceedings and not as part of an Irish restructuring process, a lawyer for the airline said on Friday, Reuters reported. Norwegian was given protection from bankruptcy in both Norway and Ireland, where most of its assets are registered, late last year and is aiming to emerge from the process in April with fewer aircraft and less debt. On Friday, the airline indicated to the Irish court that it was seeking to repudiate three aircraft sales contracts with Boeing.
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Offshore drilling rig contractor Seadrill said on Thursday it had taken an additional $2.9 billion non-cash impairment on its assets due to a bleak outlook for the sector, which has reduced demand for its drilling rigs, Reuters reported. Seadrill, which in February filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States for the second time in four years, said it expected offshore drilling demand to remain depressed well into 2021, with some degree of market recovery seen by mid-2022.
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Norwegian Air has withdrawn requests to repudiate a total of 36 aircraft leases after reaching agreement with the lessors in question as part of a restructuring process, Ireland’s High Court heard on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The budget airline was late last year given protection from bankruptcy in both Norway and Ireland, where most of its assets are registered, and is aiming to emerge from the process with fewer aircraft and less debt.
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Boeing is not engaging with Norwegian Air’s restructuring proceedings in Ireland or Norway, a lawyer for Norwegian said on Wednesday, a decision that may complicate the airline’s efforts to recover from the brink of collapse, Reuters reported. Norwegian was given protection from bankruptcy in both Norway and Ireland, where most of its assets are registered, late last year and is aiming to emerge from the process with fewer aircraft and less debt. Boeing “to date hasn’t engaged in the examinership process, or the Norwegian reconstruction ...
Planemakers Airbus and Boeing are bracing for hefty jet order cancellations from troubled Norwegian Air amid restructuring proceedings, Reuters reported. Norwegian last year won protection from bankruptcy in both Norway and Ireland, where most of its assets are registered, and is aiming to emerge with fewer aircraft and less debt. The Irish High Court this week is hearing arguments concerning the repudiation of some of Norwegian’s liabilities including aircraft leases. Norwegian has 88 A320neo-family narrow-body jets on order from Airbus, according to the manufacturer.
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Sovereign wealth funds pulled $16.3 billion from public market investment strategies, largely equities, in the fourth quarter, the most in almost four years, driven largely by redemptions, according to data and research firm eVestment, Reuters reported. The move followed a year in which some funds, including those from Norway, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, planned withdrawals to help their governments cope with the coronavirus crisis. Net outflows from equity strategies managed by third-party fund managers reached $18.5 billion in the final three months of 2020, eVestment data showed.
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Offshore drilling rig contractor Seadrill has filed for bankruptcy protection at a U.S. court, it said on Wednesday, the second time in four years the company has entered into a chapter 11 restructuring, Reuters reported. The Oslo-listed group controlled by Norwegian-born billionaire John Fredriksen returned to court along with several subsidiaries after failing to win consent from bank lenders to postpone payments on $5.7 billion of debts. Its total debts and liabilities stood at $7.3 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2020.
This weekend, Seadrill, the John Fredriksen-controlled rig operator announced that a forbearance agreement with a series of creditors expired on Friday, Shipping Watch reported. The forbearance agreement was announced by Seadrill just before New Year. The deal was entered with a series of creditors and applied to 9 of the group's 12 senior secured facilities, said that the company at the time. The expiration of the deal means that Seadrill could now be facing default claims from creditors if the company fails to make interest payments, according to the latest update.
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Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA aims to exit Irish insolvency proceedings in April as the carrier jettisons its low-cost long haul business to focus on flying in the Nordics, Bloomberg News reported. The airline expects to raise as much as 5 billion kroner ($580 million) in capital, including up to 2.5 billion kroner from existing creditors through a hybrid debt instrument, according to an investor presentation Wednesday. Secured creditors that contribute to the equity raise will boost their holdings, the company said.
The Irish High Court said on Friday it had granted an extension to Norwegian Air’s creditor protection, as requested by the examiner overseeing the process, Reuters reported. The extension to Feb. 25 was granted after a lawyer representing the Irish examiner told the court that the examiner believed the budget carrier had a reasonable prospect of survival. Norway’s government backed the airline’s survival plan on Thursday, saying it would stump up cash if private investors did too. “I will grant that application and extend the time for reporting...