Power plant rift in commercial court

A DISPUTE over a multi- million euro joint venture agreement to build and operate two electric power plants to provide power at peak times has reached the commercial court.

Cardinal Asset Management (CAM), with registered offices in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, and Nick Corcoran and Nigel McDermott of CAM claim they are entitled to participate in the joint venture between Mountside Properties Ltd and GE Energy LLC regarding the two peak power plants. The joint venture is to be carried on through Greener Peaking.

Mountside’s interest in the joint venture is valued at €40 million. The plaintiffs claim they are entitled to a two-thirds beneficial interest in Mountside on the basis of agreements allegedly reached after they participated with Mountside in another project, the Tynagh energy project in Co Galway.

Mr Corcoran and Mr McDermott claim they had agreed with Mr Keogh of Mountside that they would carry out certain business as partners and that the business would be carried on through CAM.

They claim Mr Keogh had entered into a contract of employment with CAM in January 2006. The defendants have denied the claims and have argued the proceedings are endangering the joint venture. Mr Keogh has claimed if the joint venture does not proceed, Mountside’s losses will be €10m while the potential uplift if the venture proceeds is estimated at €40m.

The judge transferred the proceedings to the commercial court list and fixed the action for trial over six days in July.