The High Court has fixed December 17th for the hearing of applications relating to the troubled Jeanie Johnston replica famine ship project.
The plan involves appointing a new board to the company involved and allowing the ship to sail to Dublin later this month and to Belfast and the United States early next year.
Mr Paul Gallagher SC, for Jeanie Johnston (Ireland) Ltd, told Mr Justice Kelly yesterday that the matter was urgent for a number of reasons.
If a proposed scheme of arrangement was sanctioned by the court, it was intended that each member of the board of directors of the company would retire from office within 24 hours of such action and a new board would be constituted, counsel said. Those persons who would be nominated as directors in place of the retiring directors had already agreed to do so.
Mr Gallagher said it was also proposed that the ship would sail to Dublin, where it would be officially received by that city's Lord Mayor on December 11th and would be open to the public from December 12th.
The plan involved the vessel then sailing to Belfast in January and starting its voyage to the United States in February. The company had been advised any such voyage should begin before mid-February, counsel added.
The court also heard a crew of at least 11 is required to operate the ship, together with 29 sail trainees. The directors of the company say they don't have the resources to incur this expense unless and until the plan is sanctioned by the court.
Mr Justice Kelly said he would fix a hearing for next Tuesday, December 17th.
At an earlier hearing, the court was told creditors stood to receive 60 per cent of what they are owed, while "local authority" creditors would get shares in the company under terms to be considered by the court.
The proposals to be considered by the court were initiated in July last by the company and Kerry Group plc.
Kerry Group has agreed to make a financial contribution through investment in the company's share capital. It will also have representation on the board of directors.
The total cost of the project to date is €13.6 million.