Tachikawa mill owes $13m, say receivers

Tachikawa remains in lockdown after the receivers were called in last year. Photo / Stephen Parker

Failed timber mill Tachikawa owes about $13 million, according to the initial receivers' report.

Just before Christmas, KordaMentha released the receivers' first report on the state of the mill's finances.

Tachikawa stopped operations in mid-October, with 130 staff being told they no longer had jobs.

According to the initial report, BNZ is owed $6.3 million.

"The company [Tachikawa] had incurred significant losses over the last two years, leaving it under-capitalised. We understand the directors were seeking to raise capital but were unsuccessful, and as a consequence requested BNZ to appoint receivers," joint receiver Brendon Gibson said in the report.

Two other preferential creditors were named, with the Inland Revenue Department submitting a preferential claim for $50,000, while the preferential claims for staff totalled just over $2 million.

Staff have received an initial payment of 43 cents in the dollar.

Mr Gibson said the company had received unsecured creditor claims totalling $6.2 million.

He said it was too early to determine whether there would be funds available to pay them.

Mr Gibson said the company had several assets, including 8 hectares of land and associated buildings, machinery, timber stock in various stages of production, and was owed about $1.4 million.

Speaking to the Rotorua Daily Post this week, Mr Gibson said they had been going through the process of selling stock.

He said that, after being unable to garner any interest in selling the mill as a whole, they were about to start the process of marketing the land and buildings separately to the plant and equipment.

Security would remain on site until that had been done, as it was an insurance requirement, he said.

First Union president Syd Keepa said the union was still working with staff who had been made redundant in a bid to find them jobs.

While he did not have any figures, Mr Keepa said he knew some workers had been successful in finding jobs but others were still looking.

Mr Keepa said they would continue to work with workers seeking jobs and had also helped out by providing food vouchers.