Farai Mabeza, Senior Staff Writer 
TONGAAT Hulett South Africa (SA) says a vote on the company’s proposed business rescue plan has been postponed to September, to allow for additional details to be updated.
The decision to go into voluntary business rescue came after what the sugar manufacturer termed significant challenges following years of high and increasing debt levels, alleged financial misstatements and historic mismanagement under previous leadership.
Tongaat Hulett has, however, stated that its Zimbabwe operations, Hippo Valley Estates and Triangle, will not be affected by the developments at Tongaat Hulett SA. The business rescue proceedings will cover two operations in SA, Tongaat Hulett Limited and Tongaat Hulett Development Proprietary Limited.
According to a statement this week by the chief executive of Hippo Valley, Aiden Mhere, the business rescue practitioners (BRPs) convened a meeting of creditors on June 14 and voted in favour of the BRPs amending the business rescue plans to take into consideration recent developments and delay the voting on the plans.
“The BRPs reached an agreement with relevant stakeholders on Friday June 9, 2023 that updating the business rescue plan with additional details in terms of the strategic equity partner process (with firm offers expected during June/July) and other matters would be in the best interest of creditors before they are requested to vote.
“This will ensure that the company will all have additional information on the business rescue plan. This does not impact its operations and the plan to rescue the business continues,” Mhere said.
“Engagement with the eight potential Strategic Equity Partners (SEPs) interested in the acquisition of, or investment in, the whole of THL and/or the SA sugar businesses and/or parts thereof will continue. The same workstreams as set out in the originally published Business Rescue Plan, take place.
“Only the timing of events changes, with the sourcing of a strategic equity partner pre-dating the release of the revised Business Rescue Plan and the operational and corporate restructuring will commence after the plan is signed off and there is clarity on the outcome of the SEP process.”
The Zimbabwe operations cover Hippo Valley and Triangle sugar estates, which provide the bulk of the group’s sugar output.
The two, according to Tongaat, are not financially distressed and therefore, will continue trading as before.
Also unaffected by the developments are Tongaat Hulett’s Botswana and Mozambique businesses.
newsdesk@fingaz.co.zw
Subscribe to The Financial Gazette
This is premium content. Subscribe to read article.
