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Minorplanet gains winding-up adjournment for UK operation
TELEMATICS PROVIDER Minorplanet Systems is continuing in its attempts to sell its UK business after securing an adjournment of a court hearing to execute a winding-up order against it.
HM Revenue & Customs is owed approximately £2m by Minorplanets UK arm. The High Court hearing was set for 5 May, but an adjournment was granted "to enable a sale of the UK business to be finalised", according to a statement from Minorplanet "Discussions remain ongoing and a further announcement wifl be made in due course," it adds.
Minorplanet needs to sell the UK business to meet HMRC's demand.
Its results for the year to 31 August 2009 (not released to the Stock Exchange until 26 February) show a pre-tax loss of £3.8m against a pre-tax profit of E1 .8m the year before, while turnover fell 36% to £9.7m.
The UK arm generated sales of £8m, down 40% as its established customer base of small and medium-sized fleet operators struggled to obtain lease finance to purchase and operate MinorplanetS services. Since then, the business has targeted larger corporate customers and the public sector and "taken action to move the business towards a recurring income mode.