Haulage firm on brink of collapse 7/12/11
Nearly 50 workers face an uncertain future as the largest Western Isles haulage firm teeters on the brink of collapse.
The firm is understood to have been put into receivership today but it is unknown if it can be sold as a going concern
Staff at Macaskill Haulage were told today that the company is in very serious financial difficulties.
Drivers later told customers that the firm was operating vehicles and trading up until tonight but nothing would be guaranteed tomorrow. Staff said they were told they face redundancy.
The firm‘s owner Derick Murray declined to comment but indicated a statement about the firm’s situation would be made later.
The firm has about 45 to 50 employees, the majority of them in the islands.
Numerous island businesses are believed to have outstanding bills owed by the firm. The figure is reckoned to be in the tens of thousands of pounds.
Macaskill Haulage was established over 25 years ago by island entrepreneur Colin “Ossan” Macaskill. It enjoyed unprecedented success with the growth of the salmon farming industry and specialised in transporting refrigerated fish from the Hebrides to Span and France.
Former Harris Tweed mill owner Derick Murray took over the firm in 2001 and increased its customer base and expanded the fleet.
Macaskill Haulage has four depots across Scotland. Its head office is in Caberfeidh Road in Stornoway. It also has a base in Lochcarnan, South Uist.
It has hubs at Dalcross Industrial Estate, Inverness and at Blantyre, Glasgow, and trucks goods to the Western Isles for supermarkets, shops and businesses.
The firm is ferry operator Caledonian Macbrayne’s largest single customer.
Representatives from the receivers were at the firm’s premises today.