McInerney delists as company examiner attempts to cut costs

TROUBLED BUILDING group McInerney Homes has cancelled its stock market listings as the examiner appointed to the company seeks to reduce costs and simplify its restructuring process.

A spokesman for McInerney, which has been under High Court protection from its creditors since August, said the company had been unable to keep up with the strict requirements associated with a public listing.

In a statement, McInerney said it had applied to the Irish Stock Exchange, the London Stock Exchange and the UK Listing Authority to cancel its dual primary listing in Dublin and London.

"The board has concluded that it is no longer in the best interests of the company or its shareholders for the company to maintain its listings, as the company is no longer in a position to meet its continuing obligations for listing," the building group said.

"The approval of shareholders will not be sought prior to the cancellation," it continued. "The board has concluded that the continued listing of the shares of the company would jeopardise the successful implementation of any investment or similar arrangement that may be agreed by the examiner to ensure the survival of the company or companies in its group."

McInerney's shares were trading at €0.025 ahead of the delisting.

The move means the costs of examiner Bill O'Riordan of PricewaterhouseCoopers will relate only to the examinership process and not to the continued costs of maintaining a stock market listing.

Court protection for McInerney Homes and a number of related companies is due to stay in place until December 3rd.

Mr Justice Frank Clarke reluctantly extended the period of examinership earlier this month, concluding that it might be possible for Mr O'Riordan to come up with a survival scheme if he was granted more time. The group owes €115 million to a syndicate of three banks - KBC, Bank of Ireland and Anglo Irish Bank - which is opposed to the examinership