more news:
BETHESDA, Md., March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- COMSAT Corporation (NYSE: CQ)
announced today that it has signed a stock purchase agreement to sell
substantially all of COMSAT RSI, Inc. (CRSI), which was placed in discontinued
operations in June 1997, to a subsidiary of TBG Industries, Inc. CRSI
designs, manufactures and integrates earth stations as well as wireless and
advanced antenna systems.
"The CRSI sale will complete another milestone in our strategy to
restructure COMSAT's balance sheet," said COMSAT President and Chief Executive
Officer Betty C. Alewine. "Completion of this sale, along with last year's
spin-off of Ascent Entertainment Group, Inc., leads us forward as a smaller,
healthier, more strategically focused company with a stronger balance sheet
and significantly less short-term debt."
"These actions also enable us to focus fully our company's resources on
three key shareholder value drivers already underway: satellite asset
valuation through privatization of INTELSAT and Inmarsat, regulatory relief
achieved by reclassification to non-dominant carrier status, and pro-
competitive reform of the Communications Satellite Act," Alewine said.
"COMSAT has made significant progress, particularly with the planned
partial privatization of INTELSAT and proposed full privatization of Inmarsat.
We also continue to work with the U.S. government to affect regulatory and
legislative change necessary to allow us to compete more effectively in the
global telecommunications marketplace."
The CRSI sale price of $116.5 million is subject to adjustment based on
inter-company loans and advances between COMSAT Corporation and CRSI at the
time of closing. The financial impact of the transaction was included in the
corporation's 1997 loss from discontinued operations. As previously
announced, COMSAT will use proceeds from the sale of CRSI to repay short-term
debt.
As part of the agreement, the Corporation is retaining Electromechanical
Systems, Inc. (EMS) and Plexsys International Corporation, pending the
evaluation of available alternatives. COMSAT also will retain and complete a
long-term construction contract for a radio telescope in Green Bank, W.Va. As
previously announced, COMSAT sold substantially all of the assets of JEFA
Wireless Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of CRSI, in a separate
transaction.
Closing for the CRSI sale is expected to occur on or before June 30, 1998,
and is dependent upon completion of certain conditions agreed to by the
parties, third party consents and regulatory filings.
Some of the statements in this news release are forward-looking, and are
based on COMSAT management's current expectations and assumptions. The timing
and completion of the sale of CRSI are subject to, and may be affected
adversely by, a number of factors which are not wholly within the control of
the corporation including governmental action on regulatory filings, receipt
of third-party consents and satisfaction of other closing conditions agreed to
by the parties.
COMSAT Corporation is a global provider of satellite services and digital
networking services and technology.
SOURCE COMSAT Corporation
/CONTACT: Janet Dewar, Vice President, Corporate Affairs, 301-214-3442;
or Gary Sharpe, Director, Investor Relations, 301-214-3244; both of COMSAT/
(CQ) |
