Former Irish rugby manager’s firm in talks with NAMA

THE loss-making property development group, co-owned by former Irish rugby team manager, Pat Whelan, is in discussions with the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) about preparing a business plan for the future support of the group.

The discussions are disclosed in accounts just filed by Steamboat Developments Ltd and subsidiaries to the Companies Office where pre-tax losses increased four fold to €5.6 million to the end of December 2008.

Steamboat Developments is co-owned by Mr Whelan and Pat Chesser and is the company that constructed the 16-storey Clarion Hotel in Limerick city overlooking the River Shannon.

Mr Whelan is a former ‘Limerick Person of the Year’ and last year, rugby star, Paul O’Connell was among 60 investors who settled a Commercial Court action against Steamboat Developments, Mr Whelan and Mr Chesser over €13.4m in loans for a property development at London’s Earls Court.

The legal case is not referred to in the accounts, which were signed off on February 9th last.

The group’s revenues almost halved during the year going from €6.8m to €3.9m with the group’s cost of sales increasing from €6.8m to €8.7m.

Auditors for the company, Cunningham Walsh & Associates cite the company having a net loss of €5.6m and a net deficit in shareholder funds of €12.1m at the end of 2008.

They state that these conditions along with other matters explained by the directors “indicate the existence of a material uncertainty which may cast significant doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern”.

A note by the directors confirms that the company is currently in discussions with NAMA “with respect to preparing a business plan for the future support of the group”.

The filings state: “This assumption depends on the recoverability of the company’s financial assets, work in progress, stock and debtors is subject to uncertainty due to the downturn in the property market and this has severe consequences on the directors’ ability to verify the appropriateness of their carrying value.”

The figures show that Mr Whelan and Mr Chesser advanced loans totalling €3m to the group during 2008 bringing the total amount advanced to €5.6m.

Remuneration for the two directors during 2008 dropped from €560,664 to €340,677. The group’s bank loan interest bill increased four fold during the year going from €125,658 to €512,832. The group’s bank loans at the end of 2008 stood at €10.8m.