Samsung raise hopes for Fokker

BANKRUPT planemaker Fokker NV said yesterday that South Korea's Sam sung Aerospace Industries was carrying out exclusive due diligence procedures, raising hopes the company can be salvaged in the coming weeks.

"The focal point of this probe is the question whether all parties involved (among which governments, Stork, banks and the court appointed receivers) can agree with a business plan currently being finalised by Samsung," Fokker said.

The news marks the most serious approach to the company's heavily loss making aircraft manufacturing businesses since the group went bankrupt on March 15th this year.

Since then a number of companies have had discussions with Fokker's receivers, notably Aviatsionnaya Korporatsiya Yakovlev of Russia and approaches from three separate Dutch businessmen.

Dutch television reported on Thursday that Samsung was prepared to pay 450 million guilders (£164 million) for the bankrupt company and was discussing other conditions with the Dutch government.

The receivers yesterday declined to comment on these figures and said much depended on conditions and contributions from the Dutch and South Korean governments.

The Dutch Economics Ministry said last month that Samsung had requested state support in return for preserving high tech jobs in the Netherlands.

The receivers warned against early optimism as Samsung was negotiating with all parties involved, alongside its investigation.

Fokker went bankrupt this year alter parent company Germany's Daimler Benz Aerospace cut a cash lifeline in January.

The South Korean firm has actively sought to build up a leading role in the aviation industry, but its attempts to do so at home failed in June when it dropped out of an Asian aircraft building project.

Samsung also needed to come to terms with engineering equipment maker Stork, which took over the profitable maintenance and services arms of Fokker that were saved from the bankruptcy, Fokker Aviation.

Stork has agreed it would sell back these parts of Fokker to a new owner of the planemaking unit if the survival of the planemaker depended on it.