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$26 Million offered for Jore Corp

POLSON (AP) — A major tool manufacturer filed an offer with U.S. Bankruptcy Court late Thursday to buy Jore Corp.’s assets for about $26.3 million,
said Jore pres ident Gerald McConnell.

By the Associated Press The Montana Standard

“ This is good news for us,” McConnell said of the Pentair Inc. offer.
He said that since Jore Corp. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May, this is the first offer for the Ronan tool company to actually become part of the
court record.

It means Pentair is com mitted to buying Jore at its proposed price, regardless of the interests of other bidders, bid-protection contingencies or Jore’s
financial perfor mance to date. Two previous sale offers have fallen through because of such dif ficulties, including a $40 mil lion offer of mostly
stock made by Pentair in January.

Thursday’s bid is a cash offer and will be the bench mark if any other offers are made at an April 15 hearing when the bankruptcy court will decide
Jore’s fate once and for all.
Pentair has lined up the support of many of Jore’s creditors, but some are fighting the proposed sale, McConnell acknowledged.

There are 26 secured creditors represented in the bankruptcy, including banks, equipment leasing firms and others. Each one’s interest in the
outcome is unique, depending on a host of fac tors, including the value of its collateral, the ease with which it could be liquidated and other
complexities.

Certain provisions of fed eral bankruptcy law allow the judge to approve such a sale, even if some creditors oppose it.
Some of Jore’s creditors already have asked the court to convert the case to a Chapter 7 liquidation, or to dismiss the case altogether, leaving
creditors with the opportunity to collect what they can by filing debt-col lection actions against Jore in state court.

Some have asked permis sion to lift the stay of execu tion of their judgments, which would allow them to take their collateral away from the Jore
factory.

All those motions will be decided April 15, along with the proposed sale to Pentair, or to any other bid der that may emerge in the meantime.
Vendors and other unse cured creditors will get nothing in such a sale, but they do not oppose a sale because vendors want to keep Jore operating,
a lawyer representing the creditors said at a hearing Tuesday in Missoula.

Stockholders have no leverage in the bankruptcy action, since they will receive nothing for their stock and have no say in the bankruptcy
proceedings.

Jore reportedly had some $90 million in debt when it filed bankruptcy in May. The debt has grown since then because of administra tive expenses,
legal fees and debtor-in-possession financ ing that has allowed Jore to continue manufacturing under Chapter 11 protection.

http://www.mtstandard.com/newsregional/rnews4.html

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