A council media statement on December 3 last year said the term of the loan was due to expire in January 2021, “with principal and accrued interest due and payable at that time”.
But at Tuesday’s council meeting, when Cr Tom Weyrich asked if the company had made any repayments, acting chief executive Scott Barber said council had received feedback Murray River Energy was optimistic and “something will be coming through before the deadline on April 2”.
This was reiterated by mayor Chris Bilkey, who said this was the actual date, “to the best of our knowledge”.
“There’s a couple of dates identified – we’re seeking some further clarification from the lawyers,” he said.
“It does actually say from the date of major payment, and the major payment is actually not identified.
“We’re not exactly sure whether the major payment constitutes when the biggest amount of money was provided or when the first amount of money was provided, but in any case, the April date is the earliest of the possible dates it could be.”
The $900,000 loan will be under review as part of an external audit investigation, with the terms of reference approved by council on Tuesday.
Now, it will seek expressions of interest from companies before appointing one to take on the task.
Cr Nikki Cohen, who is a member of council’s audit and risk committee, said “a great deal of work” went into the terms of reference.
“Councillors’ and the public’s issues that have been presented either in writing or through the media were considered,” she said.
“The audit and risk committee put a lot of time into getting this done, so I think all the boxes that anyone has of concern should hopefully be delved into.”
In August last year, Murray River Council resolved for its internal audit committee to look into its dealings with Murray River Energy.
However, in November it was revealed the committee had declined, saying it was beyond its scope.
Council then sought expressions of interest from external companies, but at December’s council meeting, it deferred a decision pending the submission of further terms of reference items and advertisement seeking expressions of interest.
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