New court documents shed light on Tesco PLC's apparent generosity to creditors of the U.S. grocery chain it is seeking to ditch, Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market, Dow Jones Newswires reported yesterday. Fresh & Easy's U.K. parent drained nearly $214 million in cash out of the U.S. venture in the year before dumping it into bankruptcy, while complaining it was losing an average $22 million per month. Unless another bidder steps up soon with a better offer, Tesco is financing a sale of the bulk of the business to the Yucaipa Cos. It is a deal that will keep stores open, save jobs, and provide suppliers with a continuing customer. Tesco has said in court documents that it put more than $3 billion in debt and equity into the venture, an effort to break into the competitive market of selling fresh food in California, Nevada and Arizona just as those areas were being slammed by the recession.
