UPDATES: PLAN TERMINATION HALTED

Plan termination halted

WASHINGTON-A complex 11th-hour agreement will avert a Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. takeover and termination of three Anchor Glass Container Corp. pension plans, which have $190 million in unfunded liabilities.

The PBGC threatened to terminate the plans after Anchor Glass's Mexican parent, Vitro S.A., said it was selling off assets of Tampa, Fla.-based Anchor Glass, which is in bankruptcy (BI, Jan. 13).

In December, Consumers Packaging of Toronto agreed to purchase most of Anchor Glass assets and create a new subsidiary called New Anchor. As part of the agreement with the PBGC, New Anchor will pay $18 million to the plans covering previously missed contributions. New Anchor also will continue to make regularly required contributions to the plans.

In addition, Owens-Brockway, a subsidiary of Owens-Illinois Corp., which is acquiring a small portion of Anchor Glass, will be responsible for about $15 million of unfunded liabilities.

As part of the agreement, Vitro has guaranteed payments of $70 million over 10 years in the event that the PBGC must terminate any of the plans and New Anchor fails to meet its obligations.