The High Court has made an order winding up Lissadell Towels Ltd, which employs 80 people at its plant in Aclient Bridge, Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan.

On the application of Mr Lyndon MacCann SC, Mr Justice Kelly also made an order appointing an accountant, Mr Tom Kavanagh, who had been appointed examiner to the company two months ago, as provisional liquidator.

The principal shareholder of the company is Unibros Holdings Ltd, a company incorporated in Cyprus, whose director is Mr Vladimir Delic, a native of Serbia.

In an affidavit, a director of Lissadell Towels, Mr Thomas O'Neill, said that despite considerable efforts by the examiner, he had been unsuccessful in securing restructuring investment for the company.

Pre-petition creditors amounted to about €1.6 million and some €102,000 was due to the Revenue Commissioners for PAYE/PRSI/VAT for March 2003.

If there was any gap in time between the termination of the examiner's appointment and the appointment of a liquidator, the value of the company's assets would be reduced and the liquidator's ability to dispose of them for the best possible price would be greatly reduced.

Mr O'Neill said the company's fixed assets comprised inter alia the freehold property at Aclient Bridge, items of plant and machinery, and stock.

In an affidavit, Mr Kavanagh said the only offer of investment received during the examinership arrived on April 1st last. As a consequence of the level of investment offered, staff who were to be made redundant under the examiner's proposals would receive only statutory payments.