Nortel on CBC’s The Current

I do not believe they would abandon their carrot? I believe they will make the payment because they do not want to lose their high paying jobs.
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re
Proto
It's not about paying $107 mill this quarter
It's about the big picture

Total payment this year would be around $450 mill which is 10% on average from $4.5 bill debt
The killing is in the Pension deficit!
Nortel has to pay a lot this year, if not bankrupt!
If Nortel goes under BK protection, Pension deficit payments will be smaller.
in other words using pre emptive bankruptcy is the best solution for Nortel, for employees, for customers, for bondholders (they will get new shares after BK) for current shareholders.
One would ask how BK and restructuring is the best for current shareholders?
I say it will save them time of watching NT each day when their NT portfolios have already lost 99.9%
There is no sense to watch the last dollar in their NT account!
Sooner is better for them as well!
Bankruptcy and restructuring is much better than bankruptcy and liquidation, isn't it?
I , as the member of wide public opinion accept BK as the best solution.
Yes4aapl

I listened to the podcast. The two NT employees, Paul Arbour and Mark Lavoie, are the heroes within NT like many others who are trying to keep the company afloat. It´s people like them who must pay the "tab" of management's mistakes with their personal layoff. Never mind that business trips to Europe and South America still put people in First Class and then unto $250 a night hotels at their destination followed by pricy meals, etc. And let's not get into those exhorbitant expat packages of free housing, car allowance, etc.

This is the plight I've been talking about all along. Indeed everyday that denial continues from management is another day of suffering for these everyday folk who work hard to put food on the table, or help their kids through university.

Management has no shame. When this is all over, they will get away scot-free, leaving the masses unemployed with less than they deserve.

Quoted in the news was:

"CBC News is speculating in a report today that Nortel maybe forced into bankruptcy if it can't make its debt payments this week."

I believe they will make the payment.

Nortel downplayed hiring bankruptcy lawyers. Once then they downplayed revisions that doubled in the past, so who knows, This recent downplaying folding s what suppliers and customers want to hear BNN said.

I can not see bond holders moving this quickly before the 15th either, even though they hired the same lawyers that handled the Lehman Bros. bankruptcy.

Besides, it is the company's money they must pay before the 15th, not theirs. =)

I do not believe they would abandon their carrot? I believe they will make the payment because they do not want to lose their high paying jobs.

What would be their advantage to an early insolvency given analysts (as per BNN) predict "traditional" "inevitable bankruptcy" given the inability to refinance thereafter in this climate. What would the saved money do for them? Or the MENs sale for that matter than to buy another day.

Heh, even MENs sale rumor rallied the stock from a recent all-time low of 20.8 cents (2 cetns presplit) but they supposedly stalled to ponder of all things, bids at amazingly twice the anticipated value. Even though this was contradicting by following news that bids were low it traded above 40 cents today on large volume albeit tanking from the open. Digesting what we are fed takes time it seems with Nortel, the longest to generate institutional interest with a extreme 10X split than delisting, which is coming too...

They pay themselves too well in my opinion to jeopardize their cash cow with board members on the voting audit committee to approve lottery sized pay practices, severances, and retirement packages. Who there would be quick to self terminate their positions to look for a job of their caliber in this market.

Many motives to downplay the inevitable where I also question their forecasts of 12 to 18 months left given the rate of decline and business exodus. Even their more recent forecasts haven't bode well from single digit growth to loss , or $20 buying opportunities, etc.... Who believes them?

Like I say, unless some one pulls the rug from under this green contradicting management protected by safe harbor, reluctant to chase past officers and with so many still there if I may add, I can not see them killing their cash cow and everyone else's white elephant. The further time and costs the numbers the SEC finally monitored repair, is yet another matter that may plague the trustee or creditors...

Even with their profound resilience and enormous political/legal power to date, I believe some one else will pull the plug... with no bailout or buyout.

I wonder if they premtively hired bankruptcy lawyers in anticipation and prior to the bondholders requested for a sit down. We do not hear about the legal wranglings behind closed doors, so we are in the dark as to exactly when too.

I just don't think it is right now if they can help it, and I think they will pay for many reasons, even though they may not be the right ones... as usual =)

I would be shocked to hear they are not gone by Q109 though.... some one will scream enough is enough well before then I suspect, albeit I would not be surprised if it came tomorrow, I only doubt it will.

Only one thing is for certain in that it is "inevitable"... as for when... fascinating speculation... I'd wildly guess mid March flexing the strongest resiliency in stalling tooth and nail... and I disregard a word Nortel says lacking credibility for exhaustive reasons if we are looking for any insight from these pinnacles of transparency reiterated their refusing to comment on 2009 .

Ah, I hate to sound so negative but since when is folding pleasant let alone the endless punchlines this keystone laughing stock has pulled, and keeps pulling... endless...

Test

http://www.cbc.ca/ottawamorning/

Monday - Future of Nortel employees

Nortel has a $110 Million Bond payment due Jan 15. This may be the big payment due this week.? This could be the first opportunity for a Nortel to declare preemptive bankruptcy. If there are no offers on the table for MEN Nortel could take this route.

Do they only have past episodes available or does it broadcast live online? I clicked on the site but didn't find a live streaming or similar option.

There doesn't seem to be a live to listen to The Current live but there is a podcast which can be found here: http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/podcast.html

This is the link you want to go to....at least to listen to Part 2...scroll down the page when the link opens...

http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/2009/200901/200901...

that worked :)

Thanks. It doesn't seem available yet. i tried mikez's link and got the real player to open, but the connection is timing out for me :(

It's been suggested that Nortel must make a debt interest payment on January 15th valued around $100 - $125 Million. I think it was UBS that stated that a few weeks back.

Then there are some that are talking about Nortel declaring bankruptcy this week to avoid making that interest payment.

if there's enough cash, why take that route?

With $2.6 Billion is cash, they can easily afford the interest payment. The bankruptcy statements are pure speculation.

With $2.6 Billion is cash, they can easily afford the interest payment. The bankruptcy statements are pure speculation.
TongueInCheeks
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re
You always gnore the big picture pushing_diverting discussion sideways...
Nortel has $4.5 bill debt with 10% interest so Nortel'd has to pay $450 mill in 2009
and Nortel has probably around $3 bill Pension deficit which Nortel has to address right away. I don't say Pension deficit has to be bigger than $1 bill in Jan 2009 but it could be as big... if NT does not use CH 11 right away.
That's why BK laws are created for companies in trouble, example Nortel. and AC example explained by DuncanSt here
http://disqus.com/people/67a33c3b4aff98d4c56f15...

Beside that Nortel has to have cash for restructuring not less than $800 mill Big restructuring.
Monetizing MEN has been a failure so far.
The best Nortel's unit and Mike Z failed to sell it.
With revenues falling down like Niagara Falls, around $500 mill less new orders each quarter in 2008,,, plus 2009 looks worse than 2008 for telecom companies... Nortel has no choice but to use pre emptive BK. no other choice...
I have not seen Nortel addressing_fighting de.listing procedure started by NYSE on Dec 10. Nortel has given up on that, in my opinion.
What will American investors do with their shares if NTs de.listed?

Don't you bloggers think it's good to go back sometimes, find posts and find who was wrong and still pushes this blog's discussion sideways?
example is here
TongueInCheek
With $2.6 Billion is cash, they can easily afford the interest payment. The bankruptcy statements are pure speculation.
...
or another one
that blogs and bloggers destroyed the company not managers and crooks inside Nortel.
or we can see all his brilliant posts here
http://disqus.com/people/TongueInCheek/#main
TiC
show me one post of yours in which you were right or that you did not mislead readers?
Why don't you want us to discuss about real Nortel?
about their new orders $2 bill lower in 2008, about restructuring Plan not being ready yet, about customers halting their purchases because the very reason, there is no Plan! (example Verizon)
TiC, how many investors you misled in last 4 years and they lost money investing in NT?
The Big Picture of Nortel is just ugly. Before BK the signs of slowing business for Nortel showed that Nortel should cut 7 000 jobs asap. There was no money for that that's why Nortel used CH11.
3-5 year Mike's Plan; failure
Nortel tried to monetize MEN.
failure!
It's not bloggers who failed, It's Nortel management!
NT is still trading on TSX and investors are still losing money. It's still $50 mill market cap company. $50 mill to be lost! Is it much? I think so. Don't you think, TiC that investors have rights to talk about NT stock and Nortel's company? about risks involved in that stock?