LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Bermuda-registered network operator Asia Global Crossing Ltd. yesterday said a US bankruptcy court approved the sale of substantially all of its assets to a group led by the telephone company China Netcom.

The deal is expected to close by mid-March, it said.

Following the sale, Asia Global Crossing plans to submit a plan of reorganisation to the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York to shed any remaining assets.

In November, the Asia Netcom group - which includes China Netcom, the U.S. investment firm Newbridge Capital and the private Japanese equity fund Softbank Asia Infrastructure Fund - agreed to buy most of Asia Global Crossing for $120 million in new equity and assume hundreds of millions of dollars of debt.

Asia Global Crossing is one of several high-speed network operators to buckle under a hefty debt load, slack demand and a glut of excess network capacity.