laut folgendem Artikel liegen die 105 Millionen auf einem Treuhandkonto wovon die erste Hälfte aber bereits bezahlt wurde. Es geht aber darum, dass Alstom MEHR GELD ALS VEREINBART will, und möglicherweise auch zugesprochen bekommt!
PARIS (Dow Jones)--French state-run nuclear engineering company Areva ( 4524.FR) said Wednesday that it is in talks with Alstom SA (ALS) to agree the final price of Transmission & Distribution, a high-voltage equipment maker it bought last year.
Areva said it has paid EUR869 million for T&D so far and that Alstom is seeking an extra payment of up to EUR150 million.
Areva Chairwoman Anne Lauvergeon said the two companies disagree on the valuation of debt attached to T&D as well as on the amount of cash left on T&D's books when the deal was signed.
Lauvergeon said a KPMG LLP (KPM.XX) expert is expected to rule on the matter by the year end. "This is part of an agreed, contractual procedure," Lauvergeon said.
Heavily-indebted Alstom was forced to put T&D, its most profitable division, up for sale to raise cash as it came close to bankruptcy last summer.
State-run Areva bought the maker of transformers, switchgear and circuit breakers as part of a broader effort by the French government to rescue a " national champion." Alstom makes France's TGV high-speed train, power turbines and luxury cruise ships.
In January, Alstom said it had received EUR815 million in cash from Areva and that a further EUR105 million had been deposited in an escrow account, pending completion of due diligence.
Areva Chief Financial Officer Gerald Arbola said EUR54 million was transferred from the escrow account to Alstom during the first half of 2004.
Arbola said if the KPMG expert were to rule in favor of Alstom on the debt dispute, Areva could end up paying more than the initially agreed price of EUR920 million for T&D.
"However, this would be neutral for (Areva) since it would mean that more cash was found on T&D's books."
Tuesday, Areva said that T&D posted a sharp drop in operating profit to EUR30 million in the first half of 2004, from EUR85 million in the same period a year earlier, because of difficulties with some key contracts.
-By David Gauthier-Villars, Dow Jones Newswires; +33 1 40 1717 40; david.gauthier-villars@dowjones.com
Dow Jones Newswires 09-29-04 0658ET Copyright (C) 2004 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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