Washington: Eastman Kodak Co. has reorganized its restructuring advisers to seeks alternatives to a bankruptcy filing.
Wall Street Journal reported here on Tuesday that Kodak hired law firm Sullivan & Cromwell’s restructuring practice to advise the company on ways to rework its finances, said people familiar with the matter. Kodak is no longer being advised by law firm Jones Day’s restructuring practice, which it had hired earlier this year for advice.
The exact reason for the switch remains unclear, and a person familiar with the matter said Jones Day remains employed by Kodak in other capacities.
Kodak has been steadfast that it has no intention of filing for bankruptcy protection, despite an increasingly precarious cash position and questions about its business strategy as consumers abandon traditional picture film.
The company warned last month that it could run out of cash to fund its operations if it can’t sell assets or raise new financing.
Kodak had $862 million in cash at the end of September, down from $1.4 billion a year earlier. Kodak has been working for months to sell a trove of patents to bolster its cash coffers, but few details have emerged so far on that auction’s progress.
Last month, the company disclosed it may seek rescue financing, but that remains one of a host of options the company is considering, one of the people said.
Chief Executive Antonio Perez maintains Kodak will return to profitability in 2012. The company has had only one profitable year since 2004.
