Jolly
THE COUNCIL of the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) wishes to advise the public that a decision has been taken to de-list West Indies Pulp & Paper Ltd. (WIPP).
WIPP has been in breach of:
(i) JSE Rule 407 "Adequate and timely submission of quarterly Financial Statements"
(ii) JSE Rule 408 "Submission of Audited Financial Statements"
The company has been suspended from trading its shares since May 30, 2001.
The decision to de-list the company was not taken previously, as the JSE believed that the interest of the minority shareholders would be best served if the company remained listed. Further, based on ongoing discussions, WIPP promised to reorganise the company and to become compliant with the rules of the Stock Exchange by September 30, 2004. However, the company failed to meet this deadline, which required them to:
(i) Submit all financial statement to the JSE in accordance with Rules 407 & 408.
(ii) Be current in the payment of all outstanding listing fees.
(iii) Provide information on WIPP Packaging Ltd. a new company incorporated by the majority shareholders of WIPP.
Consequently, WIPP was de-listed at the close of business on Friday, December 10, 2004.
Speaking with The Sunday Gleaner last week, WIPP's General Manager Joscelyn Jolly said: "We are in delicate discussions with local investors that upon conclusion could put us in a position to be more investor friendly and enable us to get funding for our operational activities."
Mr. Jolly further added, "PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC) has been engaged to do a financial evaluation of the WIPP group and advise on the best course of restructuring. We are in advanced discussions with our unsecured foreign debt holders. Anytime now we could be making a public announcement on the restructuring exercise but it will be definitely before the first quarter of 2005."
FINANCIAL SUPPORT
In the meantime WIPP has formed a new company, WIPP Packaging Limited, which has been able to access the financial support that WIPP cannot.
"WIPP Packaging is not a sister company but a separate company with separate investors. There is a contractual arrangement between the two companies to provide support to each other."
WIPP in its present form is strapped for working capital and cannot obtain financing. The company is currently carrying a high debt burden and a high cost structure.
The company's share capital consists of 25.1 million ordinary shares. WIPP, suspended from trading on the JSE since May 2001 was last sold at $0.55. At that time the 52-week high was $1.01 per share. WIPP's last published financial reports came out in November 2001, reporting a loss per stock of $4.37.
