Zoe Group 'will return to profit in 18 months'

The Liam Carroll-controlled Zoe Group will return to solvency when the Irish property market improves in 18 months time, the High Court heard today.

The beleaguered property group is for the second time seeking the appointment of an examiner, has bank borrowings of €1.2bn claimed that it will have a surplus by 2011 following the expected upturn in the global economy next year.

It is also predicted that the proposed introduction of NAMA will have a positive effect on the company's prospect for survival.

In its new petition for examinership, before Mr Justice Frank Clarke, Zoe rejected a report by economist Dr Morgan Kelly that any recovery in the property market will take a lot longer than envisaged in reports submitted on behalf of the company who claims that it faces collapse if its bid for examinership is unsuccessful.

The new petition is an attempt to secure court protection after the High Court and Supreme Court refused to appoint an examiner to the firms.

Today, Mr Justice Clarke was also informed by Michael Cush SC for Zoe that flaws identified in the original application by to be placed into examinership have been addressed in the new petition.

Counsel said that there had been an "evidential failure" on his client's part when the matter was before the Supreme Court, when certain matters had not been put before the court.

Zoe claims it has submitted a more comprehensive petition which includes information such as support of the Zoe's banking creditors about future financing, and evidence of the valuations of the assets held by the property group which had not been previously before the court.

The new petition also contains a number of expert reports from economists and valuers which clearly showed that the company had a reasonable prospect of survival as a going concern.