LG. Philips Displays USA files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

By Caroline Salls

Pittsburgh, March 22 - LG. Philips Displays USA Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on March 15 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

The company listed between $50 million and $100 million in assets and more than $50 million in debt.

Its largest unsecured creditors include:

• JPMorgan Chase Bank, Hong Kong branch as lender agent, with a $573 million bank debt claim;

• LG Philips Displays Korea Ltd., Seoul, with an $82 million trade debt claim;

• LG International Corp., Seoul, with a $34.76 million trade debt claim;

• United Ventures, Toledo, Ohio, with a $12 million former landlord claim;

• AGA Displays, Inc., Pittsburgh, with a $3.87 million trade debt claim;

• DNP Electronics America, LLC, Chula Vista, Calif., with a $3.74 million trade debt claim;

• LG Philips Displays Brasil, Ltd., San Jose Dos Campos, Brazil, with a $2.45 million trade debt claim;

• Delafoil Ohio, Inc., Pottstown, Pa., with a $1.91 million executory contract claim; and

• Nichia America Corp., Mountville, Pa., with a $1.33 million trade debt claim.

On Jan. 27, parent LG.Philips Displays Holding BV filed for bankruptcy because of worsening conditions in the cathode ray tube marketplace and unsustainable debt, along with Dutch unit LG.Philips Displays Netherlands BV and its subsidiary in Aachen, Germany.

At that time, the company said it was reviewing the financial position of its subsidiaries in France, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Mexico and the United States given the holding company's inability to further fund the subsidiaries.

LG. Philips Displays' plants in Brazil, China, Indonesia, Korea and Poland are unaffected by the bankruptcy filings, and the company said its factories in the United Kingdom (Blackburn) and the Netherlands (Stadskanaal and Sittard) are economically viable and are expected to continue production.

Over the past year, the company said it and other cathode ray tube manufacturers have seen an unprecedented decline in the market for cathode ray tubes, especially in Europe as the demand for new flat panel TVs, including LCD and plasma televisions, has surged dramatically as they have dropped in price and become cost competitive faster than was anticipated.

Although demand for cathode ray tubes has dropped precipitously in mature markets, the company said global demand for the tubes remains strong, especially in emerging markets.

LG. Philips Displays USA is a San Diego-based producer of TV and computer monitor tubes. Its Chapter 11 case number is 06-10245.

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