MOSCOW, April 5 - RAPSI. The Ninth Commercial Court of Appeals will hear on April 23 Nutritek's appeal against collecting $13.7 million in debt under a loan agreement for UniCredit Bank.

The Moscow Commercial Court satisfied the bank's claim in January.

Nutrinvestholding, the defendant's parent company, is involved in the litigation as a third party as the loan borrower, while the defendant acted as the guarantor.

The loan was issued to Nutrinvestholding in 2008. The borrower defaulted and requested debt restructuring. The bank agreed and concluded supplementary agreements.

Nevertheless, the company violated its obligations once again, and the bank was entitled to an early repayment.

Nutritek was established in 1990. It comprises five factories producing baby and customized foods - five in Russia, one in Ukraine and one in New Zealand.

Nutritek first defaulted on Eurobonds redemption in late 2008. In mid-2009, it defaulted in ruble bonds retirement. Eventually, its debt totaled about $200 million as of early 2010. Later, the company began to restructure the debt, but a number of creditors went to court.

Nutritek failed to pay dividends for 2008 and 2009. The court put Nutrinvestholding into administration pending its bankruptcy.

UniCredit Bank is a Russian commercial bank with international capital. It provides services for corporate and private clients and is engaged in corporate financing and treasury operations. It was founded under the name "International Moscow Bank" in 1989. Today, it has 106 branches in Russia and almost 3,700 employees.