Southland-based quarry company J. Crooks and Sons Ltd filed an application in the High Court at Dunedin last year to place the company in liquidation. Otago Excavation is owned by Burns Group 2018 Ltd and its sole director is listed as Dunedin man Malcolm Burns.
BDO Christchurch was appointed as receivers on November 18 and its first report has been prepared by joint receivers Colin Gower and Diana Matchett.
Since their appointment and following assessment of the company’s current position, they determined it was not viable for the company to continue to trade.
Otago Excavation provided excavation services which consisted of works required to support the forestry operations of related companies and works for external clients on residential and commercial developments.
It was managed from Mosgiel and operated across Otago and Southland.
In a summary of assets as at November 18 last year, the report listed receivables of $416,00, which included $363,000 which was subject to litigation between related companies and the company’s debtor.
The receivers were in the process of determining what monies, if any, were due and collectable by the company.
Plant, equipment and vehicles were omitted from the list. Given the receivers were in the process of realising the company’s assets through an independent auction process, the value of specific assets had been omitted.
Including those assets would materially prejudice the exercise of their functions and, in particular, their duty to obtain the best price reasonably obtainable for the sale of receivership property, the receivers said.
The auction for the majority of the company’s vehicles, plant and equipment closed on January 18 and the auction proceeds realised would be provided in the receivers’ next report.
It was expected all company vehicles, plant and equipment would be realised within the next reporting period.
As at the date of the receivers’ appointment, the company had two employees.
Both were terminated when the receivers were appointed.
Employee preferential claims were estimated to be about $20,000, the report said.
A preferential claim from Inland Revenue was yet to be received.
However, the liquidator’s first statutory report dated December 23 provided a figure of about $64,000 in relation to outstanding PAYE and GST. However, that amount had not been verified and might be subject to change, the most recent report said.
It was unlikely there would be sufficient funds available for a distribution to preferential creditors and it was unlikely there would be any funds available for unsecured creditors, which totalled $304,000, the report said.
