Stelco proposes amended plan

Stelco proposes amended plan

Stelco Inc. announced today that its board of directors has approved an amended restructuring plan for consideration by its creditors. The amended plan will be filed at Stelco's court hearing today. The court will also decide today whether or not to approve the company's application to extend the stay period under its restructuring period until December 12, 2005. The amended plan includes the same terms of the stakeholder agreement announced on November 23 except for one major change - nine percent of the Unsecured Convertible Notes will be converted to a pro-rata share of $137.5 million, received by creditors. Under the previous stakeholder agreement, the creditors would have received 25 million shares of the company instead of cash. Stelco President and CEO Courtney Pratt said in a statement, "The Board has approved an amended plan taking into account, among other things, the interests of the Company and fairness to our stakeholders. We believe the amended plan addresses those concerns in a fair, reasonable and responsible manner. While the amended plan contains certain new and positive features, including significant cash for our creditors, we are not in a position to say that it is supported by all stakeholders at this time." If the Ontario Superior Court approves the company's application to extend its stay period, affected creditors will be asked to vote on the amended plan at the next scheduled restructuring meeting on December 9, 2005.