Palmer still faces claims

BUSINESSMAN Clive Palmer is continuing to be pursued by liquidators for claims related to the collapse of his Yabulu nickel refinery despite a landmark settlement announced this week by another liquidator representing the Federal Government.

The position comes as Mr Palmer yesterday attacked the liquidators still in on the case, insolvency experts from FTI Consulting who Mr Palmer originally appointed as voluntary administrators to his Queensland Nickel Pty Ltd in early 2016.

The nickel refinery was shut down in March 2016 with debts of more than $200 million and almost 800 people lost their jobs.

Special Purpose Liquidators from accounting firm KPMG on Monday announced a settlement with Mr Palmer amounting to more than $100 million.

The money is to pay the Government $66 million – which it had paid to refinery workers as part of its Fair Entitlements Guarantee scheme in 2016 – as well as the full recovery of most unsecured creditors and other outstanding employee entitlements.

But it is understood at least 12 creditors with claims amounting to more than $100 million are still being represented by FTI’S General Purpose Liquidators.

Those liquidators are continuing to pursue claims including the recovery of payments made by Mr Palmer’s Queensland Nickel to another of his companies, Mineralogy.

Mr Palmer yesterday attacked Special Purpose Liquidators’ lawyers King & Wood Mallesons, claiming they had left themselves and their partner’s chairman, a prominent member of the Chinese Communist Party, open to damages amounting to “hundreds of millions” over an alleged withholding of legal documents.

He also zeroed in on the General Purpose Liquidators, claiming they were seeking to be awarded money “to pay themselves and litigation funders”.

The GPL claims “had no merit and were made just to enrich themselves and demonstrated the greed in the industry”, Mr Palmer said.

But a spokesman for FTI Consulting confirmed they would be pursuing Mr Palmer during the current trial which is set to run for a further five weeks.

“The GPLS are continuing to prosecute the claim for the benefit of the balance of the unsecured creditors,” an FTI spokesman said.

Meanwhile, former employees, who claim they are still owed superannuation that was withheld before the refinery collapse, say they want more information from liquidators.

Former refinery worker Sam Larkin said: “We were told we would be kept informed. How come we haven’t been told anything?”