Maag prepared to settle all claims of Tere creditors
Estonia's Maag Grupp, which announced its desire on Friday to acquire the dairy company Tere from Oliver Kruuda's company Elveda, is prepared to settle all small creditors' claims in order for the transaction to succeed and hopes to reach a separate agreement with regard to the claims of Nordea and DNB Bank.
"Bargaining over the price is underway; negotiations with the banks lie ahead," Roland Lepp, chairman of the supervisory board of Maag Grupp told BNS. As this is currently the case, the transaction's price tag is not yet clear, however Maag has an agreement on its financing with Swedbank, he added.
Although claims must still be discussed with the banks, Maag is prepared to pay off 100 percent of other creditors' claims, said Lepp. In addition, Maag has come to an agreement with Kruuda regarding his compensation.
Maag Grupp announced on Friday that they wished to strike a deal over acquiring or refinancing the debt of Elveda, the parent company of the Estonian dairy firm Tere. "In order for the transaction to succeed, we must reach an agreement with the banks that provided loans to Tere — Nordea and DNB — regarding how to acquire or refinance their claims against Tere," Lepp explained, adding that the group will seek the competition authority's permission for consolidation in the near future.
"It is important to me for the future owner of Tere to have strong financial capability and be able to ensure the development of the Tere brand and product portfolio in the future as well," said Oliver Kruuda, longtime head of the Estonian dairy company.
The largest creditors' claims against Tere's parent company Elveda exceed 30 million euros, not counting additional smaller creditors' claims. According to daily Postimees, Maag Grupp offered 60 million euros for Tere in April.
Editor: Editor: Aili Vahtla
Source: BNS