250 jobs lost as Howley is wound-up
Wednesday, 20 August 2008 17:34One of the country's leading civil engineering firms has been wound up by the High Court after the court heard there were no prospects for its survival.
Howley Civil Engineering, which was based in Carrigtwohill, Co Cork and employed 250 people, was involved in the construction of the M3 motorway.
The firm had been involved in a programme of redundancies in recent weeks which had seen its workforce shrink from 280 to 250.
A spokesperson for the National Roads Authority said Howley was one of three earth-moving sub-contractors on the M3 project.
The contractor was now in the process of finding a replacement sub-contractor, the spokesperson added, and it is not expected that today's High Court action will result in any delay to work.
Lawyers for an examiner appointed to the company told the High Court that there were no prospects for a third party investor or a survival plan.
The High Court heard previously that the company was insolvent and unable to pay its debts due to a number of factors, including the slowdown in the construction sector and additional costs on motorway and retail projects.
The company's directors had hoped to secure investors, but this morning the examiner Brian McEnery asked the court to wind up the company. Mr McEnery has now been appointed liquidator.
Howley once employed 470 people and had a turnover of €40m a year. It is understood one of its largest creditors is owed more than €5m.
