AbitibiBowater announces extension of expiration date for private debt exchange offers, consent solicitation and concurrent private notes offering
ABH (TSX, NYSE)
US$MONTREAL, March 23 /CNW Telbec/ - AbitibiBowater Inc. ("AbitibiBowater")
announced today that Bowater Finance II LLC, an indirect wholly owned
subsidiary of AbitibiBowater, has extended the expiration date for its
previously announced private exchange offers (the "Exchange Offers"), consent
solicitation (the "Consent Solicitation") and concurrent private notes
offering (the "Concurrent Notes Offering") until 11:59 p.m., New York City
time, on March 25, 2009, unless further extended. The Exchange Offers, Consent
Solicitation and Concurrent Notes Offering had been scheduled to expire at
11:59 p.m., New York City time, on March 20, 2009. As of March 20, 2009,
approximately 60.3% of the outstanding 9.00% Debentures due 2009, 60.8% of the
outstanding Floating Rate Senior Notes due 2010, 67.8% of the outstanding
7.95% Notes due 2011, 70.2% of the outstanding 9.50% Debentures due 2012,
80.2% of the outstanding 6.50% Notes due 2013 and 40.4% of the outstanding
9.375% Debentures due 2021 were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn in
the Exchange Offers.
The Exchange Offers and Concurrent Notes Offering are being made only to
qualified institutional buyers inside the United States and to certain
non-U.S. investors located outside the United States.
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy any security and shall not constitute an
offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offering,
solicitation or sale would be unlawful.
About AbitibiBowater
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AbitibiBowater produces a wide range of newsprint and commercial printing
papers, market pulp and wood products. It is the eighth largest publicly
traded pulp and paper manufacturer in the world. AbitibiBowater owns or
operates 24 pulp and paper facilities and 30 wood products facilities located
in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and South Korea. Marketing
its products in more than 90 countries, AbitibiBowater is also among the
world's largest recyclers of newspapers and magazines, and has third-party
certified 100% of its managed woodlands to sustainable forest management
standards. AbitibiBowater's shares trade under the stock symbol ABH on both
the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Forward-Looking Statements
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Statements in this report that are not reported financial results or
other historical information are "forward-looking statements" within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. They include,
for example, statements about the Company's timetable for the Exchange Offers,
Consent Solicitation and Concurrent Notes Offering. Forward-looking statements
may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as the words
"will" and "expect" and other terms with similar meaning indicating possible
future events or potential impact on the business or other stakeholders of the
Company and its subsidiaries. The reader is cautioned not to place undue
reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are not guarantees of
future performance. These statements are based on management's current
assumptions, beliefs and expectations, all of which involve a number of
business risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the
ability to satisfy the conditions of the Exchange Offers and the Concurrent
Notes Offering, the condition of the U.S. credit and capital markets
generally, worsening industry conditions and the ability to meet the required
closing conditions.
Additional factors are detailed from time to time in the Company's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Canadian
securities regulatory authorities, including those factors contained in the
Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, as amended, for year ended December 31,
2007 and Current Report on Form 8-K dated February 9, 2009, each under the
caption "Risk Factors." All forward-looking statements in this report are
expressly qualified by information contained in the Company's filings with the
SEC and the Canadian securities regulatory authorities. The Company disclaims
any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information.
