Tegeta drops bid to liquidate Guptas’ Oakbay

Tegeta Exploration and Resources has withdrawn its application to liquidate the Gupta family’s Oakbay Investments, the business rescue practitioners confirmed on Friday.

Tegeta encompasses four of eight Gupta-linked companies that were placed in business rescue in February 2018 after they lost their banking facilities and were unable to transact.

Oakbay, a holding company owned and controlled by the Guptas, owns 29% of Tegeta and is not in business rescue — a provision of the Companies Act that provides for the rehabilitation of a distressed entity.

Five months ago Tegeta, as run by the business rescue practitioners, approached the high court to liquidate Oakbay, saying it was owed R3.8m by the company in relation to a lease service agreement between the two.

‘UNABLE TO PAY’

In the founding affidavit, business rescue practitioner Kurt Knoop said that in terms of the Companies Act, Oakbay is deemed unable to pay its debt and is liable to be wound up.

In fact, without banking facilities, “it is impossible to imagine that the respondent will ever again be able to transact as a business in SA”.

The matter was heard in June and was awaiting judgment. However, but according to Bouwer van Niekerk, lawyer for the rescue practitioners, the parties settled the matter outside of court last week.

“We settled on an amount that was acceptable to the business rescue practitioners and we withdrew the application,” he said.

This is the second liquidation application brought by Tegeta against Oakbay and subsequently withdrawn.

Judgment is now awaited for a separate case in which Oakbay has asked for the removal of the Tegeta business rescue practitioners. Van Niekerk said he did not foresee a settlement in that matter.

WE SETTLED ON AN AMOUNT THAT WAS ACCEPTABLE TO THE BUSINESS RESCUE PRACTITIONERS AND WE WITHDREW THE APPLICATION

Meanwhile Tegeta’s four companies — Optimum Coal Mine, Koornfontein Mines, Optimum Coal Terminal and Shiva Uranium — all remain in business rescue.

At Optimum and Koornfontein, workers have not been paid since October 2018.

These assets are now up for sale and all bids must be submitted by Thursday.