UPDATE 2-Federal-Mogul considering Delphi bid-sources

Tue Jul 7, 2009 8:13pm EDT
 
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* Federal-Mogul among parties looking at Delphi-sources

* Suitors have until Friday to submit bids

* Offers would compete with a bid from Platinum Equity (Adds details on GM involvement, from Delphi CFO statement)

By Soyoung Kim and Jui Chakravorty

DETROIT/NEW YORK July 7 (Reuters) - Federal-Mogul Corp (FDML.O) is readying a renewed bid for the assets of Delphi Corp (DPHIQ.PK) after breaking off talks with the bankrupt auto parts maker in late May, three people with knowledge of the situation said on Tuesday.

Federal-Mogul, controlled by billionaire investor Carl Icahn, had discussions about buying all or part of Delphi before the supplier agreed to sell most of its global operations to private equity firm Platinum Equity, the sources said.

But Federal-Mogul is considering a second run at Delphi after U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain ordered Delphi to allow other bids that could compete with Platinum's offer, the sources said.

The sources asked not to be identified because information about potential Delphi bidders has not been released by the Troy, Michigan-based company or the New York bankruptcy court.

One of the sources said Icahn and Federal-Mogul have not made a final decision to move ahead with a bid for Delphi because it was not clear they would be able to match the terms of the government-brokered Platinum offer.

Delphi was spun off by General Motors Corp GMGMQ.PK in 1999 and filed for bankruptcy in 2005.

GM, which is coming through its own bankruptcy process with $50 billion in U.S. government financing, has agreed to provide $2 billion of funding to Beverly Hills, California-based Platinum.

The Platinum deal for Delphi was negotiated with the involvement of U.S. officials at the same time that the White House-appointed autos task force was readying the June 1 bankruptcy filing for GM, court documents show.

But Delphi creditors have complained that the Platinum and GM transaction was negotiated in secret and would short change their interests.

Any Federal-Mogul offer for Delphi would be aimed at its international operations and car electronics offerings, which are considered its most valuable assets, the sources said.

Drain has set a Friday deadline for bids on Delphi. An auction will take place on July 17 if any other qualified bids are made. A hearing is scheduled for July 23 to approve the sale plan.

Southfield, Michigan-based auto parts supplier Federal-Mogul declined to comment. Icahn could not be immediately reached for comment.  Continued...

 

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