Munster Express Online

The final date for the examinership of the Tweedy group is looming with February 4th being a date put down. Mr Bob Tweedy runs an extensive entertainment business in Waterford featuring the following pubs in examinership Muldoons, Rubys, Oxygen, The Woodman. Total employment at the group including full and part time jobs is in the region of 160.

Mr Tweedy is hoping to get back ownership of the group and has been seeking some debt write off. Hughes Blakes Associates are Examiners to the group and they are accountable to the creditors. Mr. Tweedy’s group has written to creditors seeking their support as the examiner has come across a new offer. They are requested to give Mark Walsh of KSC a proxy vote for them to support the Tweedy vote.

The new offer is by Barrowmill Estates Limited. This firm controls the Dinn Ri in Carlow town, a successful night time venue.

This includes a cash offer of €5m to Bank of Ireland which represents 70 per cent write off of the debt. This development has caused much anger and disappointment among the Tweedy group directors.

The bank are thus trying to salvage some of their debt. Another alternative was backed by a local business man. The local offer was a writing down of existing debt and a local investor bringing in working capital and fresh capital.

The restructuring offer from the Tweedy Group would have involved the bank recouping more of their outstanding loan over a period of the loan itself, as opposed to this 70 per cent write off. The bank is owed €5 million in total in debt at the time of examinership.