Commander Goes Belly Up $350M In Debt

Collapse of Commander Communications (corporate motto: "Think. Solve. Evolve") will leave a number of major IT support and supply contracts
up for grabs. Commander on Friday told the ASX it had appointed Ferrier Hodgson as voluntary administrators, while the company's lenders appointed McGrathNicol as receiver/managers.

The company is understood to have debt exceeding $350 million, though this could not be confirmed by the receivers at the weekend. Trading in Commander shares was suspended on Friday, at the company's request.

The receivers will seek to ensure all current Commander services continue uninterrupted while they seek buyers for the business units, McGrathNicol
partner Peter Anderson said. For the moment Commander's remaining 1300 staff will continue to be employed but their future could well be bleak.

"All Commander customer needs continue to be serviced," Anderson said. "There are no plans for major structural changes to the business while the
sale process is under way."

Commander began unravelling back in 2006 when the previous management, headed by Adrian Foote, forced though the acquisition of Volante with the subsequent dumping of Volante MD Ian Penman. Coote forecast a rapid rise to $1.1-1.2 billion in revenue, but costs mounted even more rapidly leading to Commander reporting a net loss of $245 million for the half year to December 31; revenue was $458 million, down from $505 million.