Lavasa Creditors Begin Voting On Resolution Plans
Creditors of Lavasa Corporation on have begun voting on resolution plans from Darwin Platform and Dhir Hotels & Resorts but are likely to reject both since their offers are lower than the liquidation value of the township near Pune. Darwin Platform has offered Rs 929 crore to be paid over 140 months, inclusive of 6% interest, without any upfront cash payment to lenders. Dhir Hotels – jointly owned by Alchemist ARC president Srishti Dhir and her brother Madhav Dhir – has offered Rs 1,230 crore to be paid over eight years wherein it would pay Rs 25 crore upfront, but it is subject to clearance from the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change ministry to restart work at the site. Valuers had pegged Rs 4,000 crore as liquidation value of the country’s first privately developed township when it was admitted for insolvency to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in August 2018. However, after they failed to attract bidders, the committee of creditors (CoC) directed the resolution professional (RP) to reassess the liquidation value. Consequently, the liquidation value was lowered to Rs 1,000 crore. However, it is unclear if under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), the liquidation value can be revised. If the creditors accept any of the resolution plans, the winning bidder can restart work at the site spread across 23,000 acres of land only after receiving approval from the environment ministry. The area is at present classified as forest land and therefore construction of homes and hotels cannot be undertaken without government approval. Both Darwin Platform and Dhir Hotels had improved their offer last month after lenders rejected their initial offers involving lower payment with a longer repayment schedule. Lenders have time until December 25 to vote on the proposals. The RP has admitted Rs 5,345 crore claims from 17 financial creditors.
Tags : News/Views NCLT Lavasa darwin platform dhir hotels & resorts Alchemist ARC