Wind farm probe drags on

DUE diligence is continuing at South Western Service of Bandon, which is the subject of a €64 million bid from IAWS Co-operative.

Reliable sources said the evaluation of the wind and waste management operations, the focal point of the bid by Philip Lynch of IAWS, will take a few more weeks to complete.

Concerns have been raised about the state of the wind farms in Kerry and Clare, in particular.

It is understood that little progress has been made on the Kilgarvan wind farm, which was expected to produce electricity in 2006.

However, progress on both wind farms has been slower than expected, with the start-up dates not likely before 2007.

It was suggested earlier that the wind farm operations could contribute significantly to the earnings of SWS by the end of 2006.

Sources close to the company say that’s not likely to happen now, due to setbacks or delays.

According to one source, what has emerged from the due diligence carried out is a picture of confusion about the precise earning potential of the various projects, particularly the two wind farms.

It was reported previously that €2m in junior debt has been returned to some of the West Cork Co-ops because the money was no longer needed.

It is emerging that what Mr Lynch thought he was buying from SWS is not as close to production as he understood when the initial offer was made.

How that misunderstanding arose isn’t clear, but Mr Lynch has knocked close to €10m from the original offer price.