Poolrite Australia sale on horizon
Creditors were informed at a meeting on January 23 that four offers had been made for Poolrite Australia, with one bidder well advanced in negotiations.
It is anticipated that an announcement will be made in the near future, with the successful bidder likely to purchase the tooling as well as the stock, including spare parts. It is understood the bidder in question is a manufacturer in the pool and spa industry, and may maintain a manufacturing base in Brisbane.
If Poolrite is liquidated, unpaid staff should be able to claim their entitlements through the Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG), the scheme replacing the General Employee Entitlements and Redundancy Scheme (GEERS).
Westpac is the major secured creditor and is expected to receive some funds from the deal, but the fate of unsecured creditors’ claims is less optimistic. The administrators’ fees were also signed off at the meeting.
Meanwhile, the Electoral Commission has released donor information for the previous financial year. It shows the owner of Poolrite, Ross Palmer, donated a total of $100,000 to Bob Katter’s Australia Party during March and April of 2012.
