Tinkler's Mulsanne Resources in hands of liquidators
By PADDY MANNING
Nov. 21, 2012, 4:10 a.m.

ON paper, Nathan Tinkler is worth more than half a billion dollars. But one of his private companies, Mulsanne Resources, is now in the hands of liquidators after he failed to come up with $28.4 million.

Mulsanne, named after a Bentley car model, owed the money to a coal exploration company, the Blackwood Corporation.

But although hearings in the NSW Supreme Court were twice adjourned so a settlement could be negotiated, Mr Tinkler’s lawyers failed to appear before registrar Nicholas Flaskas yesterday.

A Tinkler Group spokesman said the Mulsanne liquidation would not affect its other companies, including the Hunter Sports Group, the Newcastle Knights and Newcastle Jets.

Ferrier Hodgson were appointed liquidators of Mulsanne – a shelf company without assets, apparently established solely to invest in Blackwood – and will start an investigation likely to take until February.

If the liquidators find evidence of insolvent trading, the three directors of Mulsanne, including Mr Tinkler, could be held personally liable for its debts, and be banned as company directors.

For once, Mr Tinkler did not come up with the cash.

Over the past two months, business journalists have been trundling in and out of courtrooms before Mr Tinkler’s lawyers have settled with litigants at the last moment.

Each time Mr Tinkler has settled, the question remained: where has the money come from?

Mr Tinkler has faced intensifying speculation about his financial position as the value of his main asset, 19.4 per cent of listed Whitehaven Coal, has halved since April. Then worth $1.1 billion, his stake was worth $*** million yesterday.

But Mr Tinkler, who has moved to Singapore, also has significant debts, consolidated with hedge fund Farallon and estimated by Fairfax Media to be up to $638 million. However his spokesman has consistently indicated the true figure was ‘‘a mere fraction’’ of that.

As his paper wealth has fallen, Mr Tinkler has fended off a series of legal actions against a number of his companies, managing to settle at the last minute.

It is not clear where the funds have come from, but last month his aligned Buildev Group sold a development site in North Richmond for about $15 million.

Mr Tinkler’s cashflow problems were such at one point that, according to his racehorse trainer, John Thompson, the Patinack Farm stable was at times unable to cover horse feed and other costs.

But another spokesman for Patinack later said that that was not the case. Hunter Sports Group has reportedly been behind on staff payments and Mr Tinkler’s private jet is reportedly under a repossession order, although a representative of the mining magnate says he was unaware of this.

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/11...dators/?cs=305
So by this HSG is still safe....