The Papcel Group filed an insolvency petition on Aug. 20th due to the high level of its debts. The court has already opened insolvency proceedings with Papcel. The management of the company has quantified its debts at EUR 16 million.
PAPCEL, founded in Litovel (Czech Republic) in 1950, has been a major player in the industry. For the past 10 years, the group had an external growth strategy, acquiring technology, brands and facilities in Spain (Gorostidi), France (ABK), Italy (PMT, Gapcon), reaching a staff of 250 and a peak turnover of EUR 95 million. Last year the business volume was down to EUR 30 million.
Recently, Papcel experienced some serious setbacks. And despite the restructuring of the capital structure in March this year, David Dostal, President and main shareholder, lost the confidence of its banks and financial supporters. For several years, disputes with one of Papcel's foreign customers have undermined the banks' trust.