Standard & Poor's has said it will "most likely" lower its credit rating on Eircom's parent, Valentia, if the company's bondholders allow it to begin paying dividends again.
Valentia is asking its bondholders to give permission for the recommencement of dividend payments in the event of an IPO.
The company had agreed to suspend the dividend payments under the terms of a bond issue totalling €1.085 billion carried out in August. The bonds were in addition to bank debt of €1.4 billion also taken out in August.
Standard & Poor's placed Valentia on "credit watch with negative implications" at the end of January when the company made its request to the bondholders.
The agency said yesterday that "after a preliminary analysis", a lower rating for Valentia now looked likely.
Qualceram £4m site sale on track
Bathroom manufacturer Qualceram has exchanged contracts for the sale of its former production site at Stoke-on-Trent in the UK for £4 million (€5.85 million). The 14.5 acre site is to be acquired by the Woodford Group for the development of 230 homes.
Qualceram said yesterday that the sale remained subject to planning permission and that discussions regarding the development had already begun with local authorities.
The site had a book value of £1.3 million. The sale is expected to result in significant cost savings to Qualceram and the net proceeds will be applied in the reduction of group debt.
Fitch critical of JSG's €250m bond
Fitch has suggested that a new €250 million bond being issued by JSG Holdings, the parent of Jefferson Smurfit, offers a "less-then-positive signal" on the commitment of existing shareholders to the company.
The agency said the issue would effectively allow JSG shareholders, including Madison Dearborn, to withdraw equity from the business by substituting a tranche of subordinated debt.
Waterford Stanley picks Patterson
Waterford Stanley has announced the appointment of Mr Brian Patterson as a non-executive director. Mr Patterson, chairman of The Irish Times Ltd and the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority (IFSRA), is also a director of Waterford Wedgwood.
He has served as director general of the Irish Management Institute, of which he remains a fellow. He was chief operating officer at Waterford Crystal and chief executive of the Wedgwood Group.
Waterford Stanley is a manufacturer of cooking and heating products for domestic and overseas markets. The company claims to hold 80 per cent of the domestic cast iron stove and cooker market.
Trintech offers e-gift card product
Trintech, the Irish e-payment specialist, has launched a product that enables retailers to run electronic gift card programs.
PayWare GiftCard aims to tap into the booming market in electronic gift cards.
Gift card sales have risen 15-35 per cent annually since 1997 and were worth $45 billion (€35.6 billion) in the US alone last year.
