Unsecured creditors of construction company York Civil are unlikely to see any returns from the business.
Creditors voted unanimously to liquidate the company at its second creditors' meeting on Monday afternoon.
In a report provided to creditors, the company's administrators, Martin Lewis and Timothy Mableson from accounting firm Ferrier Hodgson blamed York Civil's failure on a number of joint venture projects, which placed a strain on the company's financial position and time of senior management.
The joint venture projects included Adelaide's Torrens to Torrens road upgrade, East Link tram extension and Perth's Swan River pedestrian bridge.
"At this stage, it is unlikely that there will be a return to unsecured creditors of the company," the administrators said.
Employee creditors may be able to recover their outstanding entitlements under the Federal Government's entitlement safety net, the Fair Entitlements Guarantee.
Report reveals dire financial position
York Civil ceased trading in August and was placed into voluntary administration.
The administrators estimated the company has $43.6 million in liabilities, but holds just $7.8 million in assets.
The liabilities include $7.9 million in employee claims and $15.9 million owed to unsecured creditors.
The administrators' report shows that prior to that date, the company was actively negotiating with two ASX-listed entities regarding the potential sale of the company's business and assets.
But no sale proceeded.
The administrators said the company recorded trading losses of $14.6 million for last financial year, forcing a reduction in the company's net assets from $21.2 million to $6.5 million in a year.
They said the company's cash position had deteriorated from $5 million cash on hand to an overdraft of $10 million in a little over two years.
York Civil is also in dispute with a major client over an $11 million debt.
Concerns about trading while insolvent
Ferrier Hodgson indicated the company may have been trading insolvent for several months.
"We are of the opinion that the company may have insolvent from 31 May, 2018," the report said.
"Given the complexity of the company's business, it would be necessary for the future liquidators to reconstruct the status and circumstances of each creditor's debt (on an individual basis) in order to better determine the amount of any claim for insolvent trading," the report said.
York Civil was 85 per cent owned by a company associated with Ian Tarbotton, who founded York Civil in 1991.
