A Nova Scotia judge on Friday approved a court-supervised sales process that will allow John Risley ‘s CFFI Ventures Inc. to begin marketing its assets as part of a restructuring involving roughly $1.4 billion in debt, including about $1 billion owed to HPS Investment Partners.

Justice John Keith authorized the proposed sale and investment solicitation process (SISP), saying the company is “buckling under staggering debt” that “far exceeds its financial worth” and that further delays would not be in the interests of stakeholders.

He also said the proposed SISP would expose CFFI’s assets to the market in an orderly and transparent manner.

The proposal had been opposed by SFPC Quantum LP, a secured creditor with interests tied to CFFI’s stake in Cormorant Utility Services Ltd., which said the shares should instead be marketed through a separate standalone process.

Keith rejected that approach, saying it lacked a concrete plan and would create uncertainty and delay and that FTI Consulting Canada Inc., the court-appointed monitor, supported the broader sales process.

CFFI has been operating under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act since March.

The approved SISP calls for notices of intent to bid by July 21 and binding offers by Aug. 11, with a potential auction the following week.

SFPC Quantum said bidders should be given additional time, proposing deadlines extending into late September, but Keith approved CFFI’s proposed timetable and granted the monitor authority to extend deadlines by up to two weeks if necessary.

• Email: arankin@postmedia.com

  • John Risley’s CFFI faces fight over key asset in $1.4-billion restructuring battle
  • John Risley’s CFFI heads toward court-supervised sale process amid $1.4-billion debt dispute