Takata creditors seek RM143 billion, far more than it can pay

TOKYO: Creditors of bankrupt Takata Corp say the parts maker owes them US$ 33.3 billion ( RM143 billion) after the automotive industry’s biggest recall over its faulty air bags - many times more than the company can repay, a court fi ling seen by Reuters shows.

In the biggest bankruptcy of a Japanese manufacturer, Takata sought court protection from creditors in June as costs and liabilities mounted from almost a decade of recalls and lawsuits.

Its air bag infl ators have been linked to at least 18 deaths and 180 injuries around the world because they can rupture and

We will continue to consider our legal options.

shoot metal fragments into vehicles.

Takata’s creditors, including carmakers such as Honda Motor Co, banks and bondholders, are seeking 3.77 trillion yen ( RM143 billion) from the supplier, mostly to cover recall costs, according to the fi ling outlining the company’s debt obligations, which hasn’t been made public.

Takata had cash and securities worth just 78 billion yen at endMarch - equivalent to just two per cent of the sum creditors are seeking.

Key Safety Systems, a Michigan-based parts supplier owned by China’s Ningbo Joyson Electronic Corp, agreed in June to buy Takata’s non-infl ator assets, such as the seatbelt and air bag businesses, for US$ 1.6 billion.

A spokesman for Takata declined to comment on the matter. A Honda spokesman said: “We will continue to consider our legal options” to reach a fi nancial settlement.

Carmakers have recalled or expect to recall by 2019 about 125 million vehicles worldwide to replace air bag infl ators, including more than 60 million in the United States.— Reuters

A Honda spokesman