Latest news with #HighCourt-approved
Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Independent
Older pension investors will take the hit as damaged Solar 21 plant to be sold on insolvent basis
The company is now attempting to finalise a sale of its subsidiary GB-Bio, which controls the power station, on an insolvent basis via 'a pre-pack administration', it said. The investment firm had previously told the High Court that the station was valued at £96m and that it had an offer of £116m to buy it. A sales process for the Tansterne plant – which the company has been unable to repair following a fire – had confirmed that there was 'no interest from purchasers in acquiring GB-Bio on a solvent basis', according to an update to investors from consultants Alvarez & Marsal (A&M), the supervisor of Solar 21's High Court-approved scheme of arrangement. Most investors were older pension investors who will not be able to make up the loss 'Due to creditor pressure and the lack of solvent offers for GB-Bio, the board of GB-Bio filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators to GB-Bio,' said A&M. The 'current offer for the assets of GB-Bio is materially lower than the value presented' in its High Court scheme of arrangement, said the A&M update. The potential purchaser has lodged a deposit of £150,000 but the sale still 'remains uncertain'. A financial services industry source said the outcome marked 'the largest loss of retail investor funds in a single investment that I am aware of.' Tey continued: 'Most investors were older pension investors who will not be able to make up the loss.' The most recent set of accounts for GB-Bio, to the end of December 2023, show a deficit in shareholders' funds of almost €56m. Thousands of Irish investors put as much as €370m into Solar 21 projects.
Irish Independent
11-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Investors might get 90pc back, says Solar 21 in update, after UK gives development consent to energy project
But 'considerable work' is needed to bring it to the point where project rights can be sold, the company's update warned. The new update projection comes as the long-time auditors of the four main Solar 21 fundraising companies resigned from each of them. They noted there were no matters with the resignations that needed brought to the attention of creditors. Solar 21 management issued the new update on the back of achieving development consent from the British government in March for the proposed project. There was no estimate for returns to investors in Solar 21's Teeside scheme At the time, it promised to provide an estimate of returns within days, but this was delayed. 'There is understandable and legitimate pressure from brokers and investors to publish the number quickly,' it said subsequently, blaming the workload around asset sales for the delay. In its latest update to investors, the investment firm has now said that EY had placed a potential 'lower-end' valuation of £235m for a 'project rights sale' of NLGEPL. Based on this figure, Solar 21 now had a 'current internal estimate' that investors may recover approximately 90pc of the initial investment. The update did not give any estimate for returns to investors with money in Solar 21's Teeside scheme that is not covered by the High Court plan. In its last update report at the end of March, consultant Alvarez & Marsal, which is supervising Solar 21's High Court-approved restructuring scheme, said that it had not been engaged by Solar 21 to assist with the new analysis of investor returns, so as 'to reduce professional costs'.
