In 2017, Insolvency Management Ltd principal Iain Nellies, of Dunedin, sold off the company’s plant and equipment, which allowed secured creditors to be paid $350,000 as well as nearly $400,000 for costs such as running expenses and receiver’s fees.
A shortfall of $4.3million remained owing to all creditors, Mr Nellies said in his final receiver’s report issued in 2017.
After a review of the mill’s books and records from when the company went into liquidation in March 2016, PricewaterhouseCoopers liquidator Malcolm Hollis started litigation against a secured creditor that had received some of the funds raised by the receiver.
"Ultimately, our process was successful in that we settled the litigation prior to court and agreed a settlement figure of $50,000," the final liquidators’ report said.
Once that was sorted out via two lump-sum payments of $40,000 and $10,000, the liquidator declared the process complete but no funds were "realised" for creditors left out of pocket.
There were four secured creditors with total claims of about $750,000.
Of the unsecured creditors, about 66 parties were left short of $882,042.
A public notice was lodged to give intention for Bruce Woollen Mill to be removed from the companies register.
