ANC Rental Corporation Reaches Agreement With Creditors
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.--Oct. 1, 2001--- Lawrence J. Ramaekers, Former National President and CEO,
to Assist in Turnaround -
ANC Rental Corporation today announced that it has reached agreements with its lenders to suspend certain financial covenants and to defer a principal payment of $70 million that would have been due October 1, 2001. The financial covenants have been suspended through November 15, 2001 and the principal payment has been deferred to November 30, 2001.
ANC Rental also announced that it has retained William N. Plamondon, III, former chairperson of the company's audit committee and former president of Budget Rent a Car Corporation, to serve as ANC Rental's chief restructuring officer. Mr. Plamondon will be responsible for developing and implementing a new strategic turnaround plan and for addressing the company's cash flow and liquidity needs that were impacted by the dramatic reduction in travel resulting from the tragic events of September 11.
In addition, the company has retained Lawrence J. Ramaekers as a consultant to work closely with Mr. Plamondon in the preparation of the company's new turnaround strategy. Mr. Ramaekers formerly served as president and chief operating officer of National Car Rental System, Inc. and has been a turnaround manager for the past 25 years.
ANC Rental also announced that Kathleen Hyle has stepped down as senior vice president and chief financial officer of ANC Rental, a position she held since November 1999. Wayne Moor has been named ANC's new chief financial officer. Mr. Moor, who will begin his responsibilities immediately, brings more than 15 years restructuring experience, most recently as the senior vice president and chief financial officer of Gerald Stevens, Inc.
Michael S. Egan, ANC's chairman and chief executive officer, noted: "I am excited about the management team that we have assembled to work on our turnaround plan. Bill Plamondon, Larry Ramaekers, and Wayne Moor have tremendous talent and industry experience and I look forward to working with them on strategies to improve our financial position. In addition, Kathleen Hyle has been a valued member of our management team and I wish her all the best in her future endeavors."
Mr. Plamondon was the president of Budget Rent a Car Corporation from June 1992 until February 1997. He served as president and chief executive officer of First Merchants Acceptance Corporation, a national financing company, from April 1997 until April 1998, and served as a director of First Merchants from March 1995 until April 1998. Mr. Plamondon also founded R.I. Heller Company LLC, a management consulting firm, in April 1998 and served as its president and chief executive officer. He also served as a senior advisor to Ernst & Young Corporate Finance. Mr. Plamondon has been a director of ANC since June 2000.
In addition to his car rental industry experience at National, Mr. Ramaekers has served as CEO of United Companies Financial Corporation, CEO of Family Restaurants, Inc., CEO of Umbro International, Inc., CEO of Centennial Technologies, Inc., CEO of Medical Resources, Inc., and as an advisor to numerous public and non-public companies. In October 2000, he was honored as the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement award from the Turnaround Management Association, the trade organization representing turnaround professionals worldwide.
Mr. Moor's restructuring and senior management experience includes not only his recent role at Gerald Stevens, Inc., but also positions as CFO and CEO of Onloan.com, an Internet start-up company in the online mortgage business; CFO of US Diagnostics, Inc., a public company that operated more than 120 medical imaging locations in 20 states; and EVP of Carteret Savings Bank and AmeriFirst Bank. Mr. Moor, who is a certified public accountant, began his career with Arthur Andersen LLP in 1974.
ANC Rental Corporation, headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, is one of the world's largest car rental companies with annual revenue of approximately $3.5 billion in 2000. ANC Rental Corporation, the parent company of Alamo and National, has more than 3,000 locations in 69 countries and employs approximately 19,000 associates worldwide.