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to make a
good-faith effort to address the concerns
expressed in the KCCs prior orders
and that the KCC needed additional time
to review the Debt Reduction Plan prior
to addressing other issues. The KCC
also stayed the requirement of a December
23, 2002 order that we form a utility-only
subsidiary for our former KPL electric
utility division (KPL) no later than
August 1, 2003.
The Debt Reduction
Plan replaced a previous financial plan to which we devoted extensive
efforts throughout 2002 to obtain KCC approval. This plan contemplated
the sale of Westar Industries common stock in a rights offering.
We refer you to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2001 and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q
for further information on this financial plan and related KCC orders.
The KCC rejected this plan on November 8, 2002 and issued an order
that directed us to file a new financial plan, to reverse specified
intercompany transactions, to reduce debt by $100 million annually
in each of the next two years from internally generated cash flow,
and to restructure our organizational structure so that KPL would
be placed in a separate subsidiary with the amount of debt held
by the utility not exceeding $1.47 billion. The order further established
standstill protections requiring that we seek KCC approval before
we enter into certain transactions with a non-utility affiliate.
Following our filing of a motion for reconsideration and clarification
of this order, the KCC issued an order on December 23, 2002 directing
that no later than August 1, 2003, KPL be held within a separate
utility-only subsidiary and that the consolidated debt for all of
our utility businesses not exceed $1.67 billion.
The standstill provisions of the December
23, 2002 KCC order potentially could have had a material adverse
impact on Protection One. These standstill provisions are described
in Note 3 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, Rate
Matters and Regulation. On March 11, 2003, the KCC issued
an order permitting us to make the payment due to Protection One
in 2003 under a tax sharing agreement and to continue making loans
to Protection One under a revolving credit facility. In addition,
the order permitted us to reimburse Protection One approximately
$4.4 million for information technology and aviation services, subject
to certain conditions.
The KCC staff and other parties to the
KCC docket considering the Debt Reduction Plan have filed comments
on the Debt Reduction Plan. The KCC has not yet established a procedural
schedule for considering the Debt Reduction Plan and the related
comments. We are unable to predict what action the KCC will take
with respect to the Debt Reduction Plan.
The KCC Orders dated November 8, 2002,
December 23, 2002, February 10, 2003 and March 11, 2003 and the
Debt Reduction Plan are exhibits to this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
All of such exhibits are incorporated by reference herein. All of
the documents concerning these matters, including the KCC Orders,
can also be reviewed at the website of the KCC at www.kcc.state.ks.us
(the website information is not incorporated herein or otherwise
made a part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K). We refer you to
these documents for further information concerning these matters.
Changes in ONEOK Ownership
On February
5, 2003, ONEOK repurchased from Westar
Industries 9,038,755 shares of its Series
A Convertible Preferred Stock,
which were convertible into 18,077,511
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shares of common stock. We received $300
million as a result of this sale, which was previously approved
by the KCC. We anticipate using all or a portion of the net proceeds
to repurchase or provide for the repayment of all of the putable/callable
notes and a portion of our 6.875% senior unsecured notes.
Westar Industries also exchanged its
remaining shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock for 21,815,386
new shares of ONEOK’s Series D Convertible Preferred Stock. ONEOK
has agreed to file a shelf registration statement covering the Series
D Convertible Preferred and common stock held by Westar Industries.
Future sales will be subject to various conditions including the
effectiveness of such registration, the required waiver or expiration
of a 180-day lockup period ending on July 22, 2003, and future market
conditions. As of March 14, 2003, Westar Industries holds an approximate
27.5% ownership interest in ONEOK, assuming conversion of the Series
D Convertible Preferred Stock.
In 2002 and prior periods, we accounted
for our ONEOK common stock investment under the equity method of
accounting. During 2003, we will account for our ONEOK common stock
investment as an available-for-sale security under Statement of
Financial Accounting Standards (SFAS) No. 115, “Accounting for Certain
Investments in Debt and Equity Securities,” and mark to market its
fair value through other comprehensive income. We will begin accounting
for our ONEOK Series D Convertible Preferred Stock investment under
this method if and when a public market for these securities develops.
Sale of Protection One and Protection
One Europe
On January 13, 2003, we announced
that our board of directors authorized management to explore alternatives
for disposing of our investments in Protection One and Protection
One Europe. The Debt Reduction Plan provides for the sale of our
interests in Protection One Europe with a targeted closing of mid-2003
and the sale of our interest in Protection One with a targeted closing
by late 2003 or early 2004. As a result, these operations were classified
as discontinued operations during the first quarter of 2003 pursuant
to the provisions of SFAS No. 144, “Accounting for the Impairment
and Disposal of Long-Lived Assets.”
As discontinued operations, we will be
required to determine the fair value of our investment, which will
be the net amount we expect to realize from the sale of the investment.
The investment must be reported at the lesser of our recorded basis
or the estimated fair value. If the fair value is less than our
recorded basis, we will be required to record an expense equal to
the amount, which could be material, by which our basis exceeds
the estimated fair value.
We solicited and received indications
of value for Protection One Europe from potential buyers. These
indications of value are within a range we would be willing to accept.
They indicated the recorded goodwill for Protection One Europe had
no value. Accordingly, we recorded a $36 million impairment charge
in the fourth quarter of 2002 to reflect the impairment of all remaining
goodwill at Protection One Europe. We are willing to accept offers
in the indicated range due to our ability to use the tax loss on
this sale to offset the taxes that would otherwise be due from our
sale of other investments. We will recognize a $58 million tax benefit
in the first quarter of 2003 when Protection One Europe is classified
as a discontinued operation.
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