Administrator move in bid to save heritage railway line
A notice of intention to appoint administrators to keep a heritage railway going has been filed.
Alan Coleman and Jason Elliott of regional chartered accountant specialist Cowgills could be appointed as administrators in a bid to help save North Wales’ historic Llangollen Railway.
Llangollen Railway Plc which operates the historic railway, has said that it is not able to continue to trade with the company insolvent to the extent of £350,000.
It has now been revealed that £250,000 of that money relates to engineering contract disputes.
Cowgills, based in Bolton and Manchester, said Mr Coleman and Mr Elliott had been instructed by the board to try and find a buyer and save up to 15 jobs.
The line is estimated to be worth around £8-10m a year to the local economy in north-east Wales.
Commenting on the potential administration Mr Coleman said: “This historic railway business, like so many other leisure businesses, has been hard hit by the Covid-pandemic.
“Over the years the Llangollen Railway has brought enormous joy to visitors and families and we hope to be able to secure a new buyer to ensure it remains one of North Wales’ best loved visitor attractions and to protect the existing jobs.”
Work to restore the 10-mile line between Llangollen and Corwen was completed in 2019 after starting in 1975.
In a statement released last week by, Llangollen Railway PLC said: “The directors would like to acknowledge the considerable support of the Welsh Government through two significant grants, and NatWest Bank which, together with furlough payments, have enabled the company to continue to meet its commitments over recent months until now.”
It added the engineering contract disputes arose before the current board took over in October 2020 and that there was no prospect of meeting the liabilities.
The company said it intended to restart operations in due course, depending on legal and regulatory approvals, but warned this would take time.
Michael Booth at the company, LSH has been appointed to market the railway and its assets and all bids must be in by close of business on Monday.
Cowgills specialises in business advisory services for small and medium enterprises.
