FiberCore Files for Chapter 11 Protection

CHARLTON, Mass., Nov. 17 -- FiberCore Inc., a manufacturer of optical fiber and preform for the telecommunication and data communications markets, announced today it filed for protection under Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Nov. 14 in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts, Western Division.

The company's foreign and domestic operating fiber subsidiaries are not involved in the filing, and the company, which serves primarily as a holding company, said it intends to utilize the Chapter 11 process to restructure its balance sheet while continuing to operate its subsidiaries in Germany and Brazil. The company said the filing will not impact day-to-day operations of its fiber subsidiaries.

FiberCore said it is pursuing breach-of-contract claims and other potential recovery situations and has "instituted an adversarial proceeding in excess of $6,000,000 against CommScope Inc. in bankruptcy court."

Mohd Aslami, FiberCore's chairman and CEO, said, "Unfortunately, the decision to file was unavoidable, given the inability to raise working capital in the US following the $5.3 million (yen-denominated) Shin-Etsu arbitration award in late July. Moving forward, we will work with our lenders, trade creditors, employees and prospective buyers/investors, which we believe is in the best interests of all, as we seek to maximize the value of the business."

In addition to its standard multimode and single-mode fiber, FiberCore also offers various grades of fiber for use in laser-based systems. Manufacturing facilities are located in Jena, Germany; and Campinas, Brazil.

For more information, visit: www.FiberCoreUSA.com