NGC wins lawsuit against SIS over move to dispose assets

The National Gas Company (NGC) has been successful in its lawsuit against Super Industrial Services (SIS) over moves to dispose of assets which are central to its arbitration claim over the termination of the $400 million contract for the failed Beetham Water Treatment Plant.

The state-owned energy company sought to have the court declare that four mortgages and a debenture (long-term security yielding a fixed rate of interest) were “sham” transactions intended to frustrate creditors, including the NGC.

In a ruling at the Hall of Justice, Port of Spain on Thursday, Justice Joan Charles said based on the evidence and pleadings, there would be judgment for NGC.

According to NGC’s claim, in March 2015, months before NGC terminated the contract, SIS took five loans from Rain Forest Resorts Ltd (RFRL) at a total value of $330 million.

Months later, SIS executed the four mortgages and the debenture which SIS assigned all of its assets to be used as security to cover the loans.

Both SIS and RFRL were ordered to pay NGC’s budgeted costs which was put at $.6 million, plus value added tax and a $17,039.25 disbursement.

The NGC was represented by attorneys Deborah Peake,SC, Jason Mootoo and Savitri Sookraj-Beharry. SIS was represented by Neil Bisnath and Lydia Mendonca while Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj and Navindra Ramnanan represented RFRL.

NGC claimed the transactions were done to hinder and defraud the company so that creditors would be unable to enforce judgment against SIS, and not a loan as contended.

It insisted that NGC was a creditor of SIS, and as judgment creditor, it would have been forced to stand line, second to RFRL.

Testifying at the trial before Charles was NGC’s corporate secretary Maria Thorne who said the mortgages were “highly unusual” as no interest was paid on them nor was any payment passed under them and the properties for the mortgages were encumbered and put beyond NGC’s reach.

In 2018, the NGC received a freezing order against SIS up to the value of $180 million and an injunction restraining RFRL from dealing with any of the property or assets charged by the mortgages and the debenture.

The dispute between the parties started in 2015 after delays in the US$162,055,318.77 project, which was due to be completed on October 21, 2016.

The contract was eventually terminated on November 24, 2016, after SIS reportedly informed NGC it was unable to continue with the work.