India: The Karnataka High Court orders closure of United Breweries (Holdings)

The Karnataka High Court on February 7 ordered the closure of United Breweries (Holdings) Limited, the parent company of UB Group, to recover dues payable to a US-based company by Vijay Mallya's now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines, the International Business Times reported.

IAE International Aero Engines is partly owned by United Technologies Corp's Pratt & Whitney and supplies engines for Airbus A320 jetliners.

In 2013, United Breweries (Holdings) Ltd had filed a lawsuit against International Aero Engines and its shareholders in a court in Bengaluru, alleging that the IAE V2500-A5 engines supplied to Kingfisher Airlines were "inherently defective, both in design and manufacture." United Breweries (Holdings) also sought $236 million in damages from International Aero Engines.

On Tuesday, February 7, Justice Vineet Kothari delivered the verdict while allowing a petition filed in 2012 by International Aero Engines. The Judge pronounced the order sitting at the Dharwad Bench of the High Court via video conference.

Kingfisher Airlines and United Breweries Holdings together owed Rs 153 crore to International Aero Engines in 2012 when the petition was filed. United Breweries Holdings was the guarantor for Kingfisher Airlines.

Shares of United Breweries Holdings closed at Rs 39.80, down 2.45 percent from their previous close on the BSE.

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