Seat misses senior debt payment as restructuring talks carry on

MILAN Dec 27 (Reuters) - Italian debt-laden yellow pages publisher Seat Pagine Gialle SpA said on Tuesday it would not pay back 55 million euros due on its senior debt, as negotiations to restructure its 2.7 billion euro ($3.5 billion) of net debt carry on.

The Turin-based company, which has already defaulted in November but its creditors did not force it into insolvency, said in a statement the figure includes 35 million euros of principle payment and about 20 million euros of interest.

Talks to restructure Seat's debt were extended twice after a proposed debt deal, which includes a debt-to-equity swap, failed to win enough support from creditors.

The 86-years old firm, which employs more than 4,000 people, was bought in 2003 by private equity firms in a 5.7 billion-euro leveraged buyout.

CVC, Permira and Investitori Associati now hold about 49.5 percent of Seat, whose market value has fallen 99 percent since its all-time 2007 peak.

($1 = 0.7669 euros) (Reporting By Danilo Masoni)