MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Sao Paulo court accepts Odebrecht recovery procedure; debts amount to US$ 22.3bn

In the request, submitted on Monday, Odebrecht declared colossal debts of 98.5 billion reais, of which 84 billion reais would be subject to restructuring negotiations.

A court in Sao Paulo on Tuesday accepted a request by Brazilian conglomerate Odebrecht to begin a corporate recovery procedure aimed at fending off bankruptcy at the scandal-tainted group.

In the request, submitted on Monday, Odebrecht declared colossal debts of 98.5 billion reais (US$22.3 billion), of which 84 billion reais would be subject to restructuring negotiations.

It is the largest such recovery request in Brazil's history, eclipsing telecom provider Oi's 64 billion reais process three years ago.

The recovery process aims to find a viable way for a debtor to continue its operations while giving it time to restructure its debt.

The goal is “avoiding bankruptcy,” lawyer and recovery specialist Daniel Amaral said, adding that talks with creditors could last 12 to 18 months.

As well as the controlling Odebrecht conglomerate (ODB) the procedure includes around 20 separate companies within the group but leaves out certain major ones including the construction arm, OEC (Odebrecht Engenharia y Construcao) and petrochemicals affiliate Braskem.

Odebrecht's main creditors are Brazilian banks Banco Nacional de Desarrollo, Banco do Brasil and Caixa Economica Federal, as well as bondholders.

The company has 60 days to submit a repayment proposal.

Founded in 1944, Odebrecht S.A. has long been one of Brazil's economic giants, building everything from the Miami Heat basketball arena to a hydroelectric dam in Angola.