Chemicals firm Venator has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US after reaching agreements with what it says is an "overwhelming majority" of its lenders and noteholders.
The Teesside-based maker of pigments, which are used in everything from clothing to cars, announced the move saying it wanted to place itself on a better footing for future growth. It follows a period of huge losses for the firm and several weeks after the completion of a £111m deal to dispose of its iron oxide business to Hong Kong giant Cathay Industries.
Venator said it had developed a recapitalisation plan in which nearly all of its funded debt will be equitised, and $275m (£221.9m) in new financing secured from supporting creditors. The Chapter 11 process, part of the US Bankruptcy Code, allows companies to reorganise their debts and assets in a proposed plan that must be in the best interests of creditors.
