Singapore’s Hyflux scraps restructuring plan as tensions with investors come to a boil
- The company, which is saddled with debts of US$2 billion, said it had no confidence its saviour would complete a S$530 million (US$391 million) cash injection
One of Singapore’s highest-profile corporate debt restructurings was thrown into disarray on Thursday, as embattled water and power company Hyflux scrapped a pact with its would-be saviour.
The rupture follows disputes in recent weeks with SM Investments, the consortium of Indonesian businessmen that agreed last year to rescue Hyflux in return for a majority stake.
It adds further uncertainty to the fate of the once-vaunted company, whose Tuaspring desalination and power plant was heralded as one of the “national taps” for an island that had long depended on importing water and harvesting rainwater for survival.
The development prolongs the plight of about 34,000 retail investors who stand to lose almost everything, after being lured by the promise of a 6 per cent annual return forever from a company that seemed to have a gold seal of government approval.