We should know more tomorrow/Thursday about the future of the French retirement home group Orpea in Belgium. A European works council is scheduled in France in the morning, followed by an extraordinary works council in Brussels at 1:00 p.m. The unions, who fear a restructuring, are wondering what sauce they will be eaten.
Orpea, in turmoil since the revelations of the book-investigation “Les Fossoyeurs”, a year ago, was indeed bent under a colossal debt of 9.5 billion euros and risked running out of cash within a few weeks.
But an agreement in principle approved in early February by Orpea, a group of investors led by the Caisse des dépôts (CDC) and creditors, plans to erase 3.8 billion euros of debt by converting it into capital and to inject 1.55 billion euros of additional capital. At the end of the process, the CDC will hold 50.2% of the capital of Orpea, the creditors 49.4% and the current shareholders 0.4%.
The group plans to regain a sustainable financial structure and restore financial balance through a restructuring plan.
However, the group’s future is still uncertain in Belgium where it operates around 60 nursing homes and 20 assisted living facilities, for a total of 4,000 employees.