A Queensland developer has lost a Federal Court battle to recoup millions of dollars from one of the biggest constructions in the world, which was involved in a failed building venture.
Glen Norris, The Courier-MailSubscriber only|32 minutes ago
A QUEENSLAND developer has lost a Federal Court battle to recoup millions of dollars from a Chinese construction giant involved in a failed building venture.
Murray Thornton, the managing director of Brisbane-based Devcorp, had sued China Railway Construction Group (CRCG), the world’s third-largest construction company, after its Australian joint venture collapsed two years ago.
The Chinese group had partnered with a Queensland building company Rimfire in 2016 as part of an ambitious plan to break into the booming apartment market.
But the venture, CRCG-Rimfire, was put into administration in 2017, owing subcontractors and other creditors up to $40 million and Devcorp about $17 million.
The collapse of CRCG-Rimfire left several of Devcorp’s major developments, including the Lume at Kangaroo Point and the Lincoln at Greenslopes, unfinished.
Mr Thornton argued that CRCG had signed a deed with the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) that ensured full payment of up to $1.09 billion to subcontractors and other unsecured creditors if CRCG-Rimfire was liquidated. He had sought orders in the Federal Court to liquidate CRCG-Rimfire and overturn a deed of company arrangement (DOCA) under which CRCG has only offered to pay less than 60¢ in the dollar to creditors, or a total amount of $8 million.
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