End of the line for paint company

THE CURTAIN came down on specialty paint manufacturer Chemspec after the Durban High Court granted an order to have the listed company provisionally liquidated on Wednesday. The company, which has been in trouble ever since its controversial chief executive, Strath Wood, stepped down in 2010, was in business rescue. However, according to the notice to shareholders lodged with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange News Service (Sens) on Monday, the business rescue practitioners Pierre Berrange and Richard Ferguson could see no way out to save the business, which has been running for 58 years, despite there being an offer made by an international buyer to purchase the business. According to the Sens notice, the deal to sell the business fell through because the sale was conditional on Chemspec obtaining a lease for its factory premises in Canelands, Durban. Chemspec’s listing was suspended in March this year. – ANA