LDV creditors set to receive less than 1p in the pound
Mr Hunt said a potential sum of £600,000 could be made available for creditors under a “Prescribed Part” procedure used in insolvencies involving sale of stock – but warned the figure could be less.
“It is a calculated sum but the maximum it can ever be is £600,000. It could be half that figure, it could be nil,” he said.
Mr Hunt said five workers had been made redundant following the sale of the assets, with around 25 remaining at the Washwood Heath factory maintaining the infrastructure of the site and for security purposes.
The sale of LDV’s assets to Dr Qu Li’s Eco Concept ends more than a century of manufacturing at Washwood Heath, and spells doom for hundreds of West Midland jobs.
Fears are increasing that van production could eventually be sacrificed to China in a “lift and shift” operation similar to MG UK at Longbridge, now owned by Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation.
Eco Concept plans to start a company producing and assembling low-volume specialist light commercial vehicles. It is hoped vehicle trials will begin within 18 months.
About 200 staff are to be employed at the new business, which is likely to be relocated to Longbridge, currently home of SAIC-owned MG UK.
