Nenaco debt is P111M — Tsuneishi

Tsuneishi Heavy Industries Inc., a joint venture of the Aboitiz Group and the Tsuneishi Group of Japan, said Negros Navigation Co. owes them a total of P111.25 million and not P36 million as claimed by the shipping unit of Metro Pacific Corp.

Tsuneishi builds and repairs ships for local and international clients and has its operations base in Balamban with the Aboitiz Group as business and management partner.

Tsuneishi used to be a partner of Nenaco until it failed to pay for repairs on its vessels, and for ship drydocking since 2002.

The company claimed that Nenaco failed to honor its promises to pay its debts despite the restructuring and rescheduling of the account. "They have refused to offer any corporate guarantees to secure credit, forcing us to go to court," Tsuneishi said.

"All Nenaco’s press releases tend to malign Tsuneishi who in this case is the victim of Nenaco’s broken commitments. Under the admiralty law, a sheriff of the court can attach any vessel at port for unpaid bills and the arrest is until such time that the creditor has been paid," Tsuneishi said.

Tsuneishi also alleged that Nenaco had altered its financial statements to avoid repayment of its loans. "Nenaco is a public company and their press releases paint they are successful and making money when their books do not reflect the true nature of their financial condition," the company said.

The question is if they are in such a good position why do they not settle their accounts to Tsuneishi," the company said.

Nenaco, on the other hand, said it "consistently and responsibly fully discloses its entire financial records as required by the relevant regulatory agencies, in accordance with the highest accounting standards."

Nenaco said that despite its rift with Tsuneishi, all its ship schedules continue uninterrupted.

The company also claimed that it continues to hold talks with Tsuneishi even if the latter has already filed a case in court to compel Nenaco to repay its debt.