Still no buyer in sight as K Club losses widen

The K Club - the Co Kildare golf resort which hosted the Ryder Cup in 2006 - is no closer to being sold, according to newly-filed accounts which also show its profits plummeted last year.

The accounts - for operating company Bishopscourt Investments - show operating profits fell by 25% last year to €1.2m, with revenues declining by 6% to €17.45m.

After interest charges of €1.96m and non-cash depreciation costs of €3m, the group recorded a pre-tax loss of €3.7m - a 20% increase on the €3.1m pre-tax loss recorded in 2017.

The golf resort - made up of a hotel, a country club and two golf courses - was put on the market for a reported €80m in June 2018 but remains unsold. It was re-listed for sale in July of this year with a significantly lower asking price of around €60m.

The accounts were signed off on September 26 by Michael Smurfit Jnr and Arthur French and a note attached to the accounts states that “as of the date of the signing the financial statements, no agreement is in place with any prospective purchaser for the acquisition of the business”.

Numbers employed by the group in 2018 reduced from 221 to 207 as staff costs decreased from €7.07m to €6.94m.

The pay included compensation of €587,926 to key management personnel.

The company had a shareholders’ deficit of €16.7m and its cash pile increased from €1.19m to €1.59m.

The group operating profit comes before interest, depreciation and amortisation charges.