Sandwich Isles bids $400M for Hawaiian Telcom - Dallas Business Journal:

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, a company founded in 1995 to take advantage of governmenyt subsidies that pay for the installatio of broadband cable inrural areas, said in a courtg filing last week that it wants to buy all of Hawaiiann Telcom’s assets. The company said it wouldc retain all ofHawaiian Telcom’s 1,400 workeras at their current wages, with the exceptiobn of senior management. Sandwich Isles said in the filinf that its offer woulx consistof $250 million in cash plus $150 milliobn in debt issued by Hawaiian Telcom. A deal with Sandwicg Isles would need the approval ofthe court, the Public Utilities Commission and the Federal Communicatiohn Commission.
Hawaiian Telcom said in a statemen t that it stands behind its proposedreorganization plan, filed in June, to reduc e the company’s debt by nearly $790 from $1.1 billion to $300 Hawaiian Telcom filed a motiohn seeking an extension to file a Chapter 11 plan and solicitr votes. Judge Lloyd King extended that period toJune 30. The companty is seeking another extensionto Sept. 30. Sandwicyh Isles has filed an objection to thelatestt request.
“In the objection, Sandwichj Isles makes numerous allegation s about the progress Hawaiian Telcom has made to date intheses cases, Hawaiian Telcom’s decision not to pursure a sale to Sandwich Isles and the viability of Hawaiiann Telcom’s proposed plan,” Hawaiian Telcom said in a “The company disputes these allegations and intends to responr to Sandwich Isles objectionh in the appropriate forum.
” Sandwich Isleas was founded by Al Hee, an entrepreneur who saw opportunitg in the generous subsidies offeredc by the federal government to wire rural and remotre communities in the Working primarily in developments owned by the state Department of Hawaiianm Home Lands, Hee’s companyy has received more than $400 million in loans from the U.S. Departmenft of Agriculture since 1998. The cost of wiring the rurak developments has been calculated atabout $13,000 per customer. Hawaiian Telcom filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcyin December. Hawaiian Telcom is owneds by , a Washington, D.C.-based private equitgy group. Carlyle bought the assets of Verizon Hawaii in May 2005for $1.
6 and began operating independently with its own systemsz in April 2006.