Roches paid almost €30m in dividends

NTR CHAIRMAN Thomas Roche and his family received just under €30 million in dividend payments in 2008 from two private companies associated with their 39.61 per cent shareholding in the waste-to-energy group.

This windfall, revealed in documents just filed with the companies office here, relates to capital returned by NTR to its shareholders following the sale of its wind energy associate Airtricity and the proceeds of its deal with the State to relinquish a lucrative tolling contract for the West Link bridge on the M50 motorway in Dublin.

Accounts lodged recently by Dreamport Ltd, Conor Holdings Ltd and Woodford Capital Ltd, all entities controlled by Mr Roche and his family, give details of the payments made to them.

The accounts show that Dreamport, which holds the Roche’s shares in NTR, received €91.27 million in 2008, relating to the redemption of shares by NTR during that year. This money was, in turn, paid to Conor Holdings, its immediate parent company.

Accounts for Conor Holdings show it paid dividends last year of €23 million to the Roche family. The company made a profit in 2008 of €85.59 million, due to the dividend windfall from Dreamport.

Meanwhile, Woodford Capital, the parent company of Conor Holdings, paid the Roche family a dividend last year of €6.24 million. A spokesman for the Roche family declined to comment on the accounts or the €29.24 million in dividend payments.

Based on its current €2.50 share price last week, the Roche family’s stake in NTR is currently worth €197.25 million.

Founded in 1978 to operate and develop toll roads, NTR has since expanded into a range of utilities, including waste, energy and telecommunications. Mr Roche was a founding director of the company.

NTR last year completed the return of €258 million of capital to shareholders by way of a share redemption.

This followed the sale of its interest in wind-farm operator Airtricity and its multi-million deal with the Government to surrender its contract to operate a toll at the West Link bridge on the M50, which was due to run to 2020.

Given the nature of its activities, NTR is a cash-hungry business. At its agm last week, the company said its Irish waste-management business Greenstar had succeeded in refinancing a €120 million debt.

NTR has assets in Ireland, Britain and the United States. Its shares are not listed on any stock exchange but can be traded through the company’s shareholders. The company said last week that a stock market listing was not on the agenda at the moment.