GALWAY BUSINESSMAN John Sweeney, whose Black Shore Holdings company was wound up last week, has consented to a €2.7 million summary judgment order in the Commercial Court over unpaid loans.

HSBC Private Bank Ireland sought the order arising from a €2.7 million loan extended to Mr Sweeney under a facility letter of December 2007 providing a line of credit to enable him to undertake various investments, subject to approval by the bank.

When the proceedings came before Mr Justice Peter Kelly at the Commercial Court yesterday, he was told Mr Sweeney, Goreen, Gortacleva, Bushy Park, Galway, was consenting to judgment in the sum sought. Judgment was entered in the amount of €2,762,868.

The bank claims Mr Sweeney had, in January 2008, executed a mortgage of shares as a continuing security for the debt and had also, in October 2009, granted a mortgage in favour of the bank over a €3 million life assurance policy held by him with Zurich Life Assurance Company of Ireland Ltd.

It was claimed Treena Sweeney, wife of Mr Sweeney, had agreed to execute second-ranking charges over various properties as additional security and Mr Sweeney had also agreed to provide a mortgage over all receivables due to him from Black Shore Holdings Ltd and its associated companies.

Those securities were to be in place by August 31st, 2009, but to date a second-ranking charge had been executed only in relation to two properties, the bank said. It added it attributed no value to that security in circumstances where prior ranking security exists. It also added no mortgage has been put in place in relation to the receivables.

The bank claims its loan facility was repayable on demand and it had, on February 1st, demanded that payment be made, with continuing interest, by February 9th. No payment was made, it said.

The bank noted a petition to wind up Black Shore Holdings Ltd was presented to the High Court on January 7th while a petition was also presented for the appointment of an examiner to four companies in the Black Shore group, including Slyne Properties Ltd.

Last week, Mr Justice Brian McGovern made an order for the winding up of Black Shore Holdings, the insolvent holding company for the group of Black Shore companies. Those companies include a business which owns a 33 per cent stake in Dublin’s Shelbourne Hotel.

The liquidator to Black Shore Holdings was sought by Esso Ireland, owed some €12.4 million.

Later last week, Mr Justice McGovern continued court protection for four companies in the Black Shore group which own or operate a number of Esso service stations, Spar stores and the Courtyard Marriott Hotel in Galway.