Pubs ‘n’ Bars to put Moorgate Taverns into administration

Moorgate Taverns has become the latest victim of the economic downturn after trading at a loss and breaching its banking covenants.

Administrator RSM Bentley Jennison has been appointed to assess Moorgate Tavern’s 10-strong estate within Hertfordshire, Oxfordshire and the South coast after it breached some of its borrowing covenants with Clydesdale bank.

Moorgate Taverns, which comprises nine tied pubs and one managed pub, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pubs ‘n’ Bars which will continue to trade as normal. The group acquired Moorgate for £9.27m in December 2007.

In a statement Pubs ‘n’ Bars, which now operates 94 pubs, said: “As a result of the general economic environment, Moorgate has been trading at a loss after finance costs and, due to the downturn in pub values, has breached certain of its borrowing covenants with Clydesdale.”

The book value of Moorgate’s pubs as at 31 December 2008 was £8.03m and the debt is £7.08m.

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By Emma White

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