Developer of North Star site faces High Court action over debts

The firm behind a proposed multi-million pound redevelopment of Swindon’s North Star site is facing court action over outstanding debts

Winding up petitions have been lodged with the High Court by creditors who are owed money by Moirai Capital Investment (Swindon) Ltd.

This is the strongest action a creditor can take against a business and the next step in debt-recovery after a statutory demand for payment.

The latest revelation follows the news that the firm had breached the terms of their development agreement with Swindon Borough Council for the site for the second time, after being given a reprieve in 2014. However, the developer issued a statement this week to say that they are confident that their development would be a success. Moirai will face their first court action, brought by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, at the High Court on December 12 and a court in Leeds will hear a claim by a Manchester based construction firm on December 13.

A Swindon Borough Council spokesman said: “We are aware of these winding up petitions and we have raised the matter with Moirai. “We will be holding further discussions with Moirai in the coming days and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.”

Following calls for the council to sever its ties with the developer, Moirai issued a statement saying that it had already secured tenants including “the UK’s largest real snow indoor ski centre, a 100-bedroom hotel, 25,000 square feet of restaurants, a high ropes and climbing centre, a 12-screen cinema and a 24-lane bowling facility.”

The firm added that a further 13,000 square feet of sports retail and food outlets were under negotiation including an adventure golf and white water rafting facility. Moirai said that delays had been caused by the need to secure planning permission on 20 junctions across Swindon before the project can be given consent.

The spokesman added: “All of us at Moirai have put in considerable effort, devotion and monetary investment to date. It is a complex development where many unforeseeable event, many not directly related to the project, have hindered progress. However, we remain confident that we shall secure a first-class unique leisure destination for Swindon that will bring significant employment and economic benefits.”

Swindon Borough Council’s Labour group spokesperson for Leisure, Cllr Jim Robbins, said: “This must be the final nail in the coffin to Moirai. They can’t keep the long-term lease on the Oasis site when they are consistently failing to meet the targets they’ve been set by the Council and are now being petitioned to “wind up” due to debts they owe.

If Swindon Council doesn’t act now then we will be just seen a toothless organisation who can be pushed around by anybody. “A winding-up petition to court is an extremely serious matter and whoever the creditor is petitioning for this, must feel very aggrieved about the Moirai owe them. The Council should now be looking for a new partner, who has a track record of delivering on developments, to take over the running of this site. After nearly 4 years of broken promises and hundreds of thousands of pounds owed, the Swindon public will rightly expect the Council to act and end this sorry affair.”

In March 2014 Moirai’s shell company MW Contract Services Ltd (formerly Oasis Operations Ltd) went into liquidation after owing £850,000 to creditors. In April 2013, Swindon Borough Council granted Moirai a 99-year-lease to develop the North Star site, which includes the Oasis Leisure Centre.