Singapore 22/04/2016 - Creditors of Queensland Nickel (QNI), the 30,000-35,000 tonnes per year nickel refinery in Yabulu in Australia, have voted in a Friday meeting to liquidate the company, administrator FTI Consulting said in a statement on the same day.
Appointed liquidators - John Park, Stefan Dopking, Kelly-Anne Trenfield and Quentin Olde of FTI – will now undertake to recover monies owing to the company’s creditors. This may include pursing recovery of any loss suffered by Queensland Nickel as a result of uncommercial and director related transactions, where it is commercial to do so, FTI said.
The decision follows a report issued by FTI last Tuesday where it recommended that creditors vote for QNI to be wounded up due to its insolvency.
QNI has been insolvent since November last year and owes creditors - including employees redundancies - close to A$300 million ($229 million).
FTI's report had noted that prior to its appointment as administrator in January, low nickel price over the past year and reduction of QNI’s working capital resulted in operating difficulties at the refinery. The refinery was operating with limited quantities of nickel ore, with lapses in maintenance and safety environmental performances, it said.
The report also criticised Palmer and QNI director Clive Mensink for being “reckless” in exercising their duties and powers as directors of the company.
Funds from QNI had been used to purchase vintage cars for Palmer’s museum and a hotel, in donations to Palmer’s political party and transferred to entities and Palmer under Palmer’s instructions, causing “significant detriment” to QNI, FTI had said.
The refinery has been shut since late February after majority of employees were sacked in March. The refinery was previously expected to be shut still at least July after QNI owner and politician Clive Palmer received a conditional offer of A$23 million ($17 million) to support the refinery's operations.