Telecommunications equipment maker Lucent Technologies, which is battling massive losses, said today it had secured $6.5 billion in new financing.
Thecompany said it obtained $4.5 billion of new 364-day credit facilities which were arranged by J. P. Morgan and Salomon Smith Barney.
Of the $4.5 billion in new financing, $2 billion replaces a credit line that expired at midnight on Thursday. The remaining $2.5 billion will be assumed by Agere Systems, Lucent's semiconductor and optical parts unit, at its initial public offering.
The rest of the $6.5 billion financing package includes an amendment to a $2 billion credit line that had been due in 2003.
Shares of Lucent closed yesterday at $12.53, up 93 cents, or 8 per cent, on the New York Stock Exchange. The stock has fallen nearly 77 per cent over the past year following several operational and product-development missteps.
Lucent cut its growth outlook several times last year and fell behind rivals in the key optical networking market. It has struggled with manufacturing constraints and declining demand for its core telephone equipment products.