Tamarind owes creditors $190m

Oil and gas firm Tamarind Taranaki could owe creditors about $190 million, it has been revealed.

The Malaysian-owned firm, which owns the Tui oil field off the coast of Taranaki, was placed into voluntary administration last week after company directors issued a statement announcing it was ‘‘insolvent, or may become insolvent’’.

As a result, a ‘‘procedural’’ meeting was held in New Plymouth between its administrators Borelli Walsh and creditors on Wednesday.

Borelli Walsh managing director Jason Kardachi said the meeting was an opportunity to confirm the administrator, form a creditors’ committee and discuss the near future of the business.

Kardachi said he couldn’t discuss much more about the meeting but said the $190m figure, which the NZ Herald reported about 78 creditors were owed, was ‘‘right’’.

However, Kardachi said that was a ballpark figure and creditors tended to say higher figures.

He was positive about the near future of the company, with the ‘‘general plan’’ of keeping operations running.

‘‘We want to keep long as we can.’’ going as

Kardachi told the NZ Herald he was still trying to secure the support of several key suppliers to avoid having to place Tamarind into liquidation.

‘‘We’ve reached an agreement with most of them but not all, which I’m working on and I hope to [secure] in coming days, for continued operation for a yet-tobe-agreed period of time.’’

Last week’s voluntary administration announcement saw Tamarind Taranaki given a 25-day moratorium to assess its ability to continue operating.

This followed its struggle with financial commitments since a $300m well-drilling programme in the offshore Tui field was suspended in September after the first well proved dry.

In October, the company did not renew a contract with BW Offshore for the floating production, storage and offloading vessel Umuroa after December 31 this year, putting 58 jobs at risk.