Main creditor stakes claim in liquidated Sails

The first creditor’s meeting
of liquidated SA Independent
Liner Services was adjourned
as swiftly as it convened, the
court-appointed liquidator
establishing only one claim
by Lonrho, the major investor
in the defunct company.
Darusha Moodliar, a
director of Sanek Recovery
Trust, tasked with winding
up the estate of Sails, told
FTW: “The only ‘proven’
claim at the first meeting for
around US$40 million was
Lonrho’s.”
She hastens to add that a
‘proven’ claim does not imply
it has been successful.
“The liquidator instructed
that the claim, and the
sensibility thereof, be
investigated. At this stage,
I cannot tell you whether
the Lonrho claim will
be entertained because
liquidation is a long process,
largely dependent on whether
Sars will submit a claim.”
Moodliar says it may
also be possible that a few
creditors hold a cession over
Sails. “Whatever monies they
would have advanced was a
security over debtors.”
The legal action mounted
under New York jurisdiction
by two international creditors
of Sails – one apparently
by Wilhelmsen for bunkers
supplied in South Africa
and Europe and still unpaid,
remains unclear.
Says Moodliar: “We need
to decide whether to review
the US cases. That means
taking them further, or
throwing in the towel.”
Given Sails has no
assets and that Sanek has
only managed to collect
around R1.4 million from
debtors, it seems unlikely,
to this correspondent’s way
of thinking, that it would
proceed with costly US
litigation.
As to the ‘batting order’
in terms of a pay-out, the
costs of liquidation (including
legal) come first, followed by
Sails employees and whoever
holds a cession over Sails.
Last week, previous MD
Ian Wicks revealed that
Lonrho had appointed, a
matter of weeks before Sails’
provisional liquidation last
October, one Chris Dyson
as MD and a UK container
expert, Trevor Sutton, to take
over management of the Sails
container fleet.
These appointments were
presumably on a short-term
contractual basis in order to
assist in the final days of the
troubled company.
Moodliar is not familiar
with Chris Dyson’s name
but says Trevor Sutton, from
whom she personally received
considerable assistance,
was employed by Lonrho
“because containers were
going missing”.