Good news (3x) and extra time for Moby and CIN Tirrenia

By | 2021 Newsletter week 44 | No Comments

Moby announced that the Court of Milan on October 27th “has issued the decrees for the deferral of the meetings of creditors in the context of the composition with creditors of Moby and its subsidiary CIN”.

Under the ‘concordato preventivo’ procedure, the Court postponed the creditor’s meetings:

  • Moby: from 13 December 2021 to 6 April 2022
  • CIN: from 20 December to 12 April 2022

The postponement came after the Vincenzo Onorato-controlled group decided to present a new restructuring plan, supported by a part of the bond holders and where the refund conditions for some class of creditors were significantly improved.

Moby also announced that the shareholder’s meeting held on 28 October 2021 appointed Mr Gualtiero Brugger as member and chairman of the Board of Directors. He succeeds Vincenzo Onorato. Brugger is a professor in economics at the Bocconi University in Milan.

Finally, Moby also made public the decision of the Italian antitrust authority. They reduced the fine for abusing its dominant position for roro freight transportation on the routes linking Italy mainland to Sardinia. (from EUR 29.2 million to 1.0 million)

Moby Submitted A Plan To Save Tirrenia CIN: Five Ferries For Sale

By | 2021 Newsletter week 21 | No Comments

Last Monday (May 24th), Moby filed a ‘concordato’ proposal for its subsidiary CIN (Tirrenia) as no agreement was found with the main creditor, i.e. the judicial administrators of Tirrenia AS, which is in extraordinary administration.

CIN owes EUR 180 million in unsecured debt (deferred payment) for the acquisition of the former public company Tirrenia from the Italian state in 2012.

The procedure will be therefore similar to the one selected also for Moby group since an out-of-court restructuring plan with the ad hoc group of bond holders was not reached either.

According to the plan submitted for Tirrenia CIN to the Court of Milan and exclusively revealed by news site Shipping Italy, five ferries are expected to be sold before 2025 (*)

Moby’s subsidiary is offering a 20% minimum guaranteed recovery to its unsecured creditors and the recovery could increase up to 35%. The repayment would take place at the earliest date of either 31 December 2025 or 36 months after the ‘concordato’ preventive homologation.

(*)

High-speed vessel ISOLA DI CAPRAIA is scheduled for sale in 2022, EUR 1.9 million

  • Roro BENIAMINO CARNEVALE in 2022, EUR 6.8 million
  • Ropax BITHIA in the same year, EUR 29.5 million
  • Ropax JANAS in 2024 for EUR 29.5 million
  • Ropax ATHARA also in 2024 for EUR 32.5 million

FERRY SHIPPING

By | 2020 Newsletter week 29 | No Comments

The Two Options Considered By Onorato To Save Moby And Tirrenia Cin

Some of the documents presented by Moby to the court of Milan –where the ferry company filed for bankruptcy protection—reveal that the Vincenzo Onorato-controlled group is considering two solutions for the debt restructuring with lenders.

In both the cases big creditors will be asked to renounce large part of the sums asked, and to receive the remaining amount with a specific payment agreement scheduled in the coming (probably five) years.

The first option is based on the sale of the harbour tug division (bound for Rimorchiatori Riuniti Panfido for EUR 73 million) and consequently using the amount received to launch a public offer to purchase all the EUR 300 million Senior Secured Notes due 2023.

Until June 8, Moby’s bonds value was 15% of the original value of emission at the Luxembourg stock exchange. To the banks and to the bond holders non interested in this offer, the ferry company intends to propose a rescheduling and postponement of the payments.

The second option foresees a restructuring procedure under art.160  of the Italian insolvency law based on the business continuity and with a partial payment for those creditors with mortgages on the ships and for no less than the fleet value.

Privileged creditors would be totally refunded instead, while unsecured creditors might receive part of their credits with a five years’ time plan.

Few years ago Unitramp Shipbrokers valued Moby group’s fleet (including Tirrenia Cin’s ferries) roughly EUR 1 billion, but updated estimations just delivered by three other shipbrokers (Enrico Scolaro, Brax and Simsonship) say that all the assets may be worth between EUR 449 million and 249 million depending on the sales condition (normal, forced, at auction, etc.).

Tirrenia CIN Closed the Catania – Naples RoRo Link Due to Insufficient Demand

By | 2020 Newsletter week 7 | No Comments

Tirrenia CIN Closed the Catania – Naples RoRo Link Due to Insufficient Demand

As from this week, Tirrenia – Compagnia Italiana di Navigazione (Moby group) is no longer operating the regular roro line between the ports of Catania, in Sicily, and Naples, in Campania. The announcement was sent to the road haulers last week.

“This line was opened in June 2018 following the request coming from the market and Tirrenia has strongly supported it with important investments. Today we are forced to interrupt the operation in the light of the lack of sufficient traffic to support the line economically. The other maritime connections will continue as planned” the company said.

On the Catania – Salerno route Grimaldi Group will remain the only player active, while Cartour currently deploys a roro ship on the Messina – Salerno link.

CIN Tirrenia Announced Cost Saving Plan

By | 2019 Newsletter week 51 | No Comments

Labour unions in Italy revealed that Massimo Mura, CEO of Tirrenia CIN announced a cost saving plan which will result in the layoff of some 1,000 seafarers and 70 workers ashore.

Both the branch offices in Cagliari and Naples will be closed down and the employees are proposed to move to Portoferraio, Genoa or Milan. Labour unions reacted, announcing that the workers will go on strike against the decision.

Grimaldi Asks Italian Authorities to Stop Paying Public Subsidies to Tirrenia CIN

By | 2019 Newsletter week 26 | No Comments

Italy’s financial newspaper MF-MilanoFinanza revealed that, earlier this month, Grimaldi Group sent a petition to the local Transport Minister, the Antitrust Authority and the Court of Audit, asking for an early termination of the subsidies (EUR 72 million per year) paid to CIN Tirrenia by the Italian State.

This subsidy supports lifeline maritime transportation with Sardinia, Sicily and Tremiti Islands.

Grimaldi stated that the public subsidies should be stopped due to breach of the public contract following the case sentenced by the Italian Competition Authority for alleged abuse of dominant position in the freight business in Sardinia and the alleged deferred payments under the CIN-Tirrenia purchase agreement.

Onorato Armatori later replied that Grimaldi’s petition is based on “false information”.