Food suppliers among the creditors

DEBTS:THE MANSFIELD family company that owns Citywest Hotel and other assets in Saggart, Co Dublin and which was placed in liquidation yesterday, has a shortfall in funds for unsecured creditors of €31.2 million.

A statement from the directors of the estimated affairs of the company said it had premises which could realise up to €120 million.

Richie Mahon, the former financial controller of HSS, said the company owned the Citywest Hotel, two adjacent golf courses, a new convention centre and a new educational centre.

It also owns six blocks of apartments at Westpark over which Irish Nationwide has a fixed charge and which are not expected to realise any value for creditors.

A receiver, Martin Ferris, was appointed to HSS on July 6th, 2010, on the application of Bank of Scotland (Ireland). The bank is owed €140 million and has a fixed and floating charge over the company’s assets with the exception of the Westpark apartments.

The Collector General is owed €1.1 million and the local authority €2.34 million, while 18 former employees who have not been paid their statutory redundancy entitlement by the company, may also in time create a debt. These will be treated as preferential creditors.

The company’s current assets include debtors of €25.5 million, an undisclosed amount of which includes money owed from related Mansfield businesses.

The estimated statement of affairs indicates that there will be approximately €6.47 million available for unsecured creditors after the bank and the preferential creditors have been paid. The unsecured creditors are owed €37.7 million. Many are small suppliers of building or catering services.

The largest unsecured creditor is Swift Concepts Ltd, which is owed an estimated €24 million. Swift is owned by Alexander Boyce and Wayne O’Connor, both with addresses in Saggart, Co Dublin.

The company was established in February 2008 and was involved in construction. It is currently listed to be struck off the Companies Register for the non-filing of accounts.

Other unsecured creditors include Lara Electrical Ltd (€4.1 million) and Christy O’Connor jnr (€1.4 million).

The lesser creditors include solicitors Noel Smyth Partners (€540,642), Premier Exhibitions RMS Titanic (€299,210), RG Perks Ltd (€272,250), Harmon Air Conditioning (€179,037), Carat Ireland (€125,375), MusgravefoodServices (€19,225), Energia (€117,184), Kelly Bros Butchers Ltd (€83,109), Keelaghan Wholesale Meats (€72,254), and Eircom (€40,000).

Fianna Fáil is owed €1,000 and Fine Gael €80.

George Maloney, of Baker Tilly Ryan Glennon, Dublin, was appointed liquidator after the shareholders in HSS, an unlimited company, voted earlier yesterday to put the company into liquidation.

A meeting of creditors at the hotel yesterday heard that the Revenue Commissioners had initiated court proceedings to have its liquidator appointed. The case was to come to court later this month. The meeting was told the directors of HSS are Jim Mansfield and his sons Tony and PJ.