A TROUBLED renewables manufacturer a third-owned by ministers seen as a key part of the future of Scotland's wind farm revolution has said "no decision" has been taken to call in administrators.
It comes as speculation has continued to mount over the collapse of struggling Burntisland Fabrications (BiFab) after the Scottish Government pulled its support.
Ministers stand to lose up to £54.2m of taxpayers money which it has pumped into the firm in return for a stake in the company if it goes under.
But it has still chosen to U-turn over a commitment to effectively underwrite a contract to have a part in the the £2 billion Neart Na Gaoithe (NnG) offshore wind farm project in the Firth of Forth to the tune of £30m.
Scottish Government sources revealed that a re-evaluation came after BiFab in September failed to win any work on Scotland’s largest offshore wind farm, the multi-billion pound Seagreen project, located just a few miles from its yards in Burntisland and Methil in Fife.
The government cited European rules against subsidies to commercial firms.
The yards are currently operating on a skeleton 30 staff - with zero contracts in place at present but at its height employed hundreds.
It has led to speculation that a call for administrators to move was inevitable.
A spokesman for DF Barnes, the Canadian firm which took control of Bifab for just £1 two years ago said “no decision” has been taken over whether to call in administrators.
Last week the owners of Bifab hit back at Scottish government claims it failed to invest in their Fife and Lewis fabrication yards.
They said the Canadian owner had repeatedly offered to offload shares to the government at no cost.
It said this would give the Scottish government - which owns a third of the company - more flexibility to back it.
The company said the offer had not been taken up, but still stood. And it said ministers' statements about it had been inaccurate or untruthful.
It claimed the ultimate Canadian parent firm, JV Driver, responded to a Scottish government invitation to become involved three years ago, on the understanding that ministers would provide most of the finance required to win new contracts.
The Fife-based firm described itself as "perplexed and disappointed" at recent developments.
Fife politicians Neale Hanvey MP and David Torrence MP have said that the Bifab owners were one of the two major problems behind securing vital work for the yards.
In a joint statement, Mr Hanvey and Mr Torrance called on JDriver to invest - or step aside., “We are confident that Scottish ministers have done everything within their power to support BiFab,” they said.
“JV Driver seems completely unwilling to invest. The simple solution is that it makes way for someone who can back up their words with investment.”
Despite having a third of the company, ministers do not have a seat on the board.
Their lower class B shares prevent ministers from having the right to instigate a meeting of shareholders. Papers show that a quorum for such a meeting only exists if the shareholders hold not less than 51% of the A shares and only the Canadians hold those.
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