Discontinued Operations

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2011

Discontinued Operations

Discontinued Operations

14.  Discontinued Operations

On October 26, 2010, the Venezuelan government, through Presidential Decree No. 7.751, expropriated the assets of Owens-Illinois de Venezuela and Fabrica de Vidrios Los Andes, C.A., two of the Company’s subsidiaries in that country, which in effect constituted a taking of the going concerns of those companies.  Shortly after the issuance of the decree, the Venezuelan government installed temporary administrative boards to control the expropriated assets.

Since the issuance of the decree, the Company has cooperated with the Venezuelan government, as it is compelled to do under Venezuelan law, to provide for an orderly transition while ensuring the safety and well-being of the employees and the integrity of the production facilities.  The Company has been engaged in negotiations with the Venezuelan government in relation to certain aspects of the expropriation, including the compensation payable by the government as a result of its expropriation.  On September 26, 2011, the Company, having been unable to reach an agreement with the Venezuelan government regarding fair compensation, commenced an arbitration against Venezuela through the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes.  The Company is unable at this stage to predict the amount, or timing of receipt, of compensation it will ultimately receive.

The Company considered the disposal of these assets to be complete as of December 31, 2010.  As a result, and in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, the Company has presented the results of operations for its Venezuelan subsidiaries in the Consolidated Results of Operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2010, as discontinued operations.  At September 30, 2010, the assets and liabilities of the Venezuelan operations are presented in the Consolidated Balance Sheets as the assets and liabilities of discontinued operations.

The following summarizes the revenues and expenses of the Venezuelan operations reported as discontinued operations in the Consolidated Results of Operations for the periods indicated:

	Three months ended			Nine months ended
	September 30,			September 30,
	2010			2010
Net sales	$	52		$	129
Manufacturing, shipping, and delivery	(34		)	(86		)
Gross profit	18			43
Selling and administrative expense	(2		)	(5		)
Other expense	4			3
Earnings from discontinued operations before income taxes	20			41
Provision for income taxes	(4		)	(10		)
Net earnings from discontinued operations	16			31
Net earnings from discontinued operations attributable to noncontrolling interests	(4		)	(7		)
Net earnings from discontinued operations attributable to the Company	$	12		$	24

The net assets of the Company’s Venezuelan operations were written-off as of December 31, 2010 as a result of the deconsolidation of the subsidiaries due to the loss of control.  The type or amount of compensation the Company may receive from the Venezuelan government is uncertain and thus, will be recorded as a gain from discontinued operations when received.  The cumulative currency translation losses relate to the devaluation of the Venezuelan bolivar in prior years and were written-off because the expropriation was a substantially complete liquidation of the Company’s operations in Venezuela.

The condensed consolidated balance sheet at September 30, 2010 included the following assets and liabilities related to the discontinued operations of the Company’s Venezuelan subsidiaries:

Assets:
Cash	$	43
Accounts receivable	21
Inventories	26
Prepaid expenses	3
Total current assets	93
Other long-term assets	5
Net property, plant, and equipment	30
Total assets	$	128
Liabilities:
Accounts payable and other current liabilities	$	25
Other long-term liabilities	15
Total liabilities	$	40