Hyflux and Salim-Medco settle lawsuit over deposit; judicial managers ask for more time

TROUBLED water treatment company Hyflux and its former white knight have settled a tussle over funds that were in escrow, judicial managers from Borrelli Walsh told the bourse in a filing on Monday.

This comes as the judicial managers asked for their term of office to be extended by 60 days, until July 14, in a court application filed on April 30.

Hyflux, which went under judicial management in November 2020 after more than two years of debt restructuring, had sued erstwhile suitor SM Investments (SMI) - a tie-up between Indonesia's Salim Group and Medco Group - over a deposit of S$38.9 million.

It filed a suit for the release of the deposit after a S$530 million rescue deal was called off in 2019 - only to be met with a counterclaim from SMI. (see amendment note)

Hyflux and SMI have now agreed to "fully and finally resolve, settle and discontinue the suit" without any admission of liability, under an agreement from April 7, the judicial managers said in their latest update.

Trading in Hyflux securities has been suspended since May 2018.

Amendment note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the rescue deal was called off last year. The deal was in fact cancelled in 2019.