Britain's Johnston Press announces the end of the Formal Sale Process

Britain`s Johnston Press , the publisher of The Scotsman, The Yorkshire Post and "I", said on Friday that the Board has concluded that none of the offers the Company has received deliver sufficient value and has ended the Formal Sale Process.

The embattled publisher said the best remaining option is for the Company and its principal subsidiaries to be placed into administration.

It is envisaged that, subject to administration orders being made, the Group`s businesses and assets will then be sold to a newly-incorporated group of companies controlled by the holders of the Bonds, Johnston Press said.

The company also added that the defined benefit pension scheme will not transfer and the Pension Protection Fund will be notified and the PPF, with the assistance of the Trustees of the Scheme, will then assess whether the scheme needs to enter the PPF.

Earlier today the Telegraph reported that Johnston Press is preparing to end its debt crisis this weekend by entering administration and immediately handing control to its lenders.

The company is due to apply for court approval to appoint administrators and execute a pre-packaged sale to a new holding company controlled by the New York hedge fund GoldenTree Asset Management, the Telegraph said.

The restructuring specialists AlixPartners would handle the administration, which is scheduled over the weekend to minimise disruption to Johnston Press, the newspaper added.

The owner of the Daily Mail newspaper had drawn up a plan to make an offer for the "I" title from Johnston Press after the struggling regional publisher put itself up for sale, Sky News reported last week.

The company said in August it was trying to grapple with tough market conditions affecting the performance of its newspapers and websites, pension obligations and the weight of its debt.

(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)