Zanders - Profitable liquidation instead of hasty winding-up

04.01.2022

BGH-Consulting achieves high proceeds from Zanders insolvency estate

Zanders liquidation

With the liquidation of the insolvency estate of the Zanders paper mill, the business consultancy BGH-Consulting has proven that companies do not have to be wound up hastily even under pressure, but that the greatest possible benefit can be achieved for creditors if implemented professionally.

After the failed attempt to restructure the traditional Bergisch-Gladbach company and against the background of ongoing costs, the insolvency administrator had initially intended to wind up Zanders as quickly as possible. The company's own wastewater treatment plant alone was causing a high six-figure monthly outlay. In addition, there was political pressure to redesignate the company site as quickly as possible. A busy liquidator had already offered to take over the current assets located at the plant for a "negative purchase price" of a lump sum of 100,000 euros.

However, the experienced BGH Consulting team led by partners Andreas Bauer and Christoph Lessig convinced the insolvency administrator that significant proceeds could be achieved with the involvement of specialist expertise. The plant site contained around 4,000 tons of ready-for-production format, bale and roll paper alone, for which buyers could be found quickly and without complications.

More complex was the task of recycling 1,350 tons of chemicals stored in silos and tanks. Under high time pressure, the BGH consulting team organized transport containers and logistics. In some cases, special technical solutions had to be found in order to be able to pump and extract liquids and powders. With their reliable network, the BGH-Consulting team succeeded in selling back a smaller part of the stock to the manufacturers of the chemicals. For the larger part, buyers were found on the secondary market. Only 5 percent of the chemicals ultimately had to be disposed of properly and in compliance with the complex technical and administrative regulations.

The bottom line is that BHG brought in a high six-figure net profit for the creditors and proved that a professionally structured liquidation is preferable to a hectic wind-down.

Read how BGH-Consulting continued with cleaning up the Zanders mill, in our report "Paper machines: Dismantling requires complex project management"  - soon available here.



Andreas Bauer, January 2022