Bidder gives up on Seafresh

By IRENE CHAPPLE

A deal to buy the majority shareholding of troubled fishing company Seafresh has collapsed after due diligence proved unsatisfactory.

Bidder James Slade pulled out of the deal on Friday, three days after saying he had been told "absolutely nothing" about the Lower Hutt company.

The investment banker, who is based in Manila, had offered $100,000 for the 56.46 per cent shareholding, owned by the Lim family, at 0.27c a share.

The offer was made on April 11, and Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu carried out due diligence.

Slade is a co-owner of Blenheim's Hotel d'Urville, and is a director for Australian listed company Aquarius Platinum, which owns mines in South Africa.

Seafresh, founded by the Lim family in 1982, had a $6.8 million loss for the year to September, after a $2.8 million loss the previous year. Its share price is around 2.5c, compared with 30c when it listed in 1996.

Seafresh is negotiating with Harts Contributory Mortgages over a defaulted $1.35 million loan. Attempts to sell its $2 million factory to repay the loan were unsuccessful.

Managing director Heng Lim did not return calls.