A major British work boat company has called in corporate restructuring specialists after running into financial difficulty. South Boats Special Projects Ltd is the leading manufacturer of service vessels for the offshore wind power industry and employs around 120 people.
The firm, which is based out of Cowes on the Isle of Wight, has called in restructuring experts from national accountancy firm and corporate recovery specialists Chantrey Vellacott DFK.
David Clements, partner and restructuring specialist at Chantrey Vellacott DFK , said: “South Boats is the leading specialist in the manufacture and service of crew transportation vessels to offshore wind farms and provide refit and repair facilities. The company employs around 120 people directly and has production and operations across two sites. It also currently sub-contracts work out to several other companies based in the Solent area. The root of the financial problems the company finds itself in today is mainly due to a combination of the challenge of rapid growth, significant design investment, new product introduction and expansion of manufacturing footprint.”
As a result of the above, cash flow has become critical and despite an order book of some £21 million and a further enquiry pipeline of some £35 million, the possibility of the company continuing without a further investor is not possible and in order to protect the company whilst further investment is sought, the directors have filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators.
[mappress]
Press Release, October 17, 2012
service vessels