FORM 20-F THOMSON multimedia - Technicolor

option de conversion ou d’échange en actions nouvelles, or ‘‘2002 OCEANEs’’) for the development
of our activities, including through acquisitions, particularly in our Digital Media Solutions and New
Media Services divisions, and to expand our broadband products and services offering in the context
of an evolving technological environment, increasing digitalization and opportunities for interactivity,
as well as for general corporate purposes. We provide certain information on our liquidity
requirements as of December 31, 2001 below in ‘‘— Contractual obligations and commercial
commitments.’’
At the end of 2001, we maintained a positive net cash position (cash and cash equivalents
minus financial debt), of 0 402 million, compared with 0 629 million at the end of 2000. Our financial
debt totaled 0 1,131 million at the end of 2001, compared with 0 1,143 million at the end of 2000.
Financial debt does not include promissory notes of U.S.$600 million due to Carlton for our
acquisition of Technicolor, which are included in ‘‘Other creditors and accrued liabilities’’. We have
the option of paying half of this amount in Thomson shares. On March 16, 2002, U.S.$150 million of
this amount was paid in cash. Note 23 to our consolidated financial statements and ‘‘— Contractual
obligations and commercial commitments’’ below contains information about our off-balance sheet
commitments. Cash and cash equivalents were 0 1,532 million at the end of 2001, compared with
0 1,772 million at the end of 2000.
At the end of 2001, we had committed undrawn credit facilities of 0 1.3 billion with a consortium
of banks, principally consisting of three 0 400 million tranches of 364-day, three-year and five-year
maturities and uncommitted credit lines from unaffiliated third-party lenders amounting to approximately
0 1.2 billion of which 0 116 million had been used as of December 31, 2001.
We have put in place securitization programs to increase further our financial flexibility. A
U.S. securitization program allows for the sale of U.S. commercial receivables up to a maximum of
U.S.$225 million (0 255 million at the December 31, 2001 closing rate), and a European
securitization program allows for the sale of French and German commercial receivables up to a
maximum amount of 0 152 million. As of December 31, 2001, we had no outstanding receivable
sales under these securitization programs.
In 2000 we entered into a synthetic lease for the construction and equipment of our new
television tube manufacturing facility in Mexicall, Mexico for an amount of U.S.$257.5 million
(0 291.8 million at the December 31, 2001 closing rate). This amount includes U.S.$251.5 million
(0 285 million at the December 31, 2001 closing rate) relating to buildings and equipment, recorded
as an off-balance sheet commitment, and U.S.$6 million (0 6.8 million at the December 31, 2001
closing rate) relating to land, considered as a capital lease and recorded as long-term debt. In
addition, we have entered into a sale-leaseback arrangement for tube-manufacturing equipment in
our Polkolor plant, which generated 0 138 million in cash flow in 2001. The cash flow generated from
this transaction was used by our subsidiary in Poland to reimburse debt. For more information on
these leases see Note 23 to our consolidated financial statements.
Contractual obligations and commercial commitments
The two tables presented below provide information regarding contractual obligations and
commercial commitments as of December 31, 2001 for which we are obligated to make future cash
payments. These tables include firm commitments that would result in unconditional or contingent
future payments but exclude all options we hold since the latter are not considered as firm
commitments or obligations. When an obligation leading to future payments can be cancelled
through a penalty payment, the future payments included in the tables are those that management
has determined most likely to occur given the two alternatives.
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