China Environment releases results of court hearing

Daughter of its former executive chairman undertakes to pay law firm Rajah & Tann $2.2 million

Mr Huang Min, former executive chairman of industrial waste gas treatment specialist China Environment. The firm said yesterday that Ms Huang Lu, Mr Huang's elder daughter, has to pay $2.2 million to law firm Rajah & Tann, which she was supposed to h
Mr Huang Min, former executive chairman of industrial waste gas treatment specialist China Environment. The firm said yesterday that Ms Huang Lu, Mr Huang's elder daughter, has to pay $2.2 million to law firm Rajah & Tann, which she was supposed to have received on Oct 20 from the sale of her shares in China Star Food Group. ST FILE PHOTO

Mr Huang Min, former executive chairman of industrial waste gas treatment specialist China Environment, and his two daughters have given High Court undertakings over the proceeds of share sales.

The firm yesterday released the results of the court hearing last Wednesday, over a writ of summons China Environment had earlier issued against Mr Huang and his family.

On Sept 28, it said the matter was about alleged non-existent receivables from firms Anhui Shengyun Mechanical and Nanning Youji Technology.

The firm said yesterday that Ms Huang Lu, Mr Huang's elder daughter, has to pay $2.2 million to law firm Rajah & Tann, which she was supposed to have received on Oct 20 from the sale of her shares in China Star Food Group.

Ms Huang has said she will not deal with or dispose of about six million yuan (S$1.23 million) - the balance of the first tranche of the sale proceeds of $2.2 million.

Mr Huang and his second daughter Huang Wen are not to do anything "which will prevent or otherwise interfere with Huang Lu's compliance" with those results from the court hearing.

The firm said a pre-trial conference for the case has been fixed for Nov 25.

China Environment has had several troubles in recent times.

Late last month, its unit Fujian Dongyuan Environmental Protection received a letter of demand from China Construction Bank, for 85,801 yuan in overdue interest on a working capital loan of 23 million yuan.

The Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority had also asked the firm to refile and restate its financial statements for financial years 2013 and 2014 in mid-June - done under the Financial Reporting Surveillance Programme.

This came after China Environment's auditor Baker Tilly resigned on April 15.

The firm previously said it had difficulties working with Baker Tilly's Chinese team earlier this year and asked Baker Tilly to send its Singapore team, or switch to another component auditor in China, to complete the audit of the firm's Chinese units. But Baker Tilly did not agree, so the firm proposed a change in auditors, and RT then became its auditor.

Of the latest proceedings, the firm said it "will keep the shareholders informed on any material developments".

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 25, 2016, with the headline China Environment releases results of court hearing. Subscribe