SHARES in Alternative Investment Market-listed Shiedltech were suspended this morning “pending clarification of the company’s financial position” as the prolonged downturn takes its toll.
The Warrington-based group produces body armour and in May had been appointed as preferred supplier to at least 30 of the 53 UK police forces under a national framework agreement.
However none of the series of mini-tenders under the agreement have been completed and the timing of orders “remains uncertain”.
In a statement, the company said: “The UK police market has experienced significant changes in the past three years, driven by several factors of which the latest are the delays reported above.
“These have severely limited the company's ability to win new contracts in the UK and adversely impacted its working capital position.
“The company has been working with its bank, HSBC, loan note holders and existing and new potential investors, to try to strengthen its working capital position but no satisfactory conclusion has been reached.”
In 2009 Shieldtech’s shares were suspended from AIM for five months while the company sought refinancing, which it successfully completed in June last year.
Although the group made a small pre-tax profit of £92,000 in the year to June, 2009, it had lost £10.3m in 2008.
