Sale of Carich Wellington campus fails

A bid to sell Carich Training Centre's Wellington site fell through yesterday but receivers still hope to close deals on two other properties.

KPMG partner Kerryn Downey said there was still "a reasonable chance" one of the Auckland sites would be bought. A decision would be made about noon today. "Wellington has collapsed, but there's still a possibility of something in Christchurch," he said.

Carich - one of the country's largest private education providers - went into voluntary receivership on October 29 with debts of over $5 million.

Mr Downey said KPMG had to act quickly to retain the nearly 3700 students who made up Carich's core wealth. But when it became clear no credible buyer was going to take over the entire business, KPMG worked with the Qualifications Authority to find places for the students.

Negotiations with 12 parties late last week and over the weekend failed, but said "several parties" were still interested. Carich had nine campus locations in Auckland, Manukau, Hamilton, Wellington, Lower Hutt and Christchurch. Other assets will be offered for sale at auction.

Carich founder Caron Taurima said she had thought she would be saved by about 2000 students from Te Wananga, a Maori-operated tertiary institution with more than 50,000 students.

- NZPA

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