Putting Solid Energy into voluntary administration, plus drawing up a Deed of Company Arrangement and meeting other legal costs, incurred an expenditure of almost $9 million.<ref>RNZ, 13 December 2015, [http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/business/292003/lawyers,-accountants-cost-solid-energy-$9m “Lawyers, accountants cost Solid Energy $9m”], accessed July 2016</ref>
===2016===
In February Solid Energy chairman Andy Coupe told a Parliamentary select committee that further redundancies were inevitable. The company would be able to give an update on the sales process around the middle of the year. By the end of the year it should be possible to say whether or not the assets could be sold. Despite reducing costs, Stockton was still reporting “slight losses” and there was an indication that it would be closed. About 40% of the operation plant had been removed in recent weeks.<ref>Business Day, 11 February 2016, [http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/76784713/Solid-Energy-has-decision-pending-on-whether-to-close-Stockton “Solid Energy has decision ‘pending’ on whether to close Stockton”], accessed July 2016</ref>
The next month it was announced that a further 41 jobs would be lost from Stockton where job numbers had decreased from 1100 to 225 over the previous four years.<ref> Business Day, 9 March 2016, [http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/77675748/more-jobs-lost-at-solid-energy “More jobs lost at Solid Energy on the West Coast”], accessed July 2016</ref> In May $6 million worth of ex-lease mining equipment was moved from Stockton to Christchurch to await sale but the hoped-for Australian sales did not eventuate.<ref>Business Day, 20 June 2016, [http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/81253429/solid-energy-stockton-mining-equipment-fails-to-sell “Aussie buyers can’t be bothered to check out Solid Energy Stockton mining equipment”], accessed July 2016</ref>
Proposed sell-off of Solid Energy land in Huntly, in the wake of the closure of Huntly East mine, also encountered obstacles. Hauraki-Waikato MP Nanaia Mahuta claimed that the sale would be a breach of good faith undertakings given to Waikato-Tainui in their Treaty of Waitangi settlement reached 20 years previously. (The settlement gave the right of first refusal to Waikato-Tainui when land had been wrongly confiscated.) "It's evident that in going to the market first Solid Energy is seeking a market value, potentially from overseas interests, that may out-price Waikato-Tainui's ability to see these tribal lands returned,” said Mr Mahuta. “That's unfair and breaks the spirit of the settlement.”<ref>Scoop, 19 March 2016, [http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1603/S00311/solid-energy-sell-off-slap-in-face.htm
“Solid Energy sell-off slap in face”], accessed July 2016</ref>
Administrators Korda Mentha reported in April 2016, that as of 16 March it was estimated that there were five secured creditors with total claims of $258,946,564.<ref>Korda Mentha, 14 April 2016, [https://www.business.govt.nz/companies/app/service/services/documents/228CBB854A6C4810B141CD2475BBF175 “Deed Administrators Accounts, Coal New Zealand Limited”], accessed July 2016,</ref>
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