Pink Skips goes into administration

Shropshire-based Wellings Ltd, which trades as Pink Skips, yesterday (February 18) appointed Grant Thornton as administrative receivers after a period of trading losses.

The receivers are now inviting offers and contacting potential interested parties who may wish to acquire the trade and assets of the business.

Pink Skips operates a 5 million recycling plant in Ketley, Shropshire. The company operates three principle divisions construction services, recycling and waste management, and household skips through which it works with a range of organisations, from local authorities to blue chip construction companies, alongside members of the public.

Services provided by the firm include include: skip hire; land regeneration; recycling; management of hazardous waste; and, demolition and aggregates.

The administrative receivers recommend that customers contact the company through the normal channels if they have any enquiries.

Cash pressure

In a statement issued yesterday, the receiverssaid: Following a period of trading losses and cash pressure the directors of the company decided to seek an outside investor or strategic partner to allow for the continuation and development of the company. Corporate finance advisors were engaged to undertake a period of marketing but unfortunately no formal offers were received. In view of this, the directors concluded the company could not continue to trade and took the difficult decision to invite the bank to appoint administrative receivers, which they duly did.

It added: Of the 60 employees a total of 23 have been retained to aid in securing the site and realising the assets whilst the administrative receivers make their enquiries.

Last year, Pink Skips managing director Will Wellings warned that swift action needed to be taken to deal with large stockpiles of waste wood in the UK following the closure of the panelboard manufacturer Sonae UK, which previously consumed 400,000 tonnes of waste wood a year (see letsrecycle.com story).

Municipal contract

The borough of Telford and Wrekin uses the Pink Skips sorting facility for its collections of recyclables from households. In a statement today it asked residents to leave out their kerbside recycling for collection.It added thata short term agreement has been put in place for the remainder of the week for its contractor to continue to drop off at Pink Skips, “so no further problems are expected after today.”