fa ene THE VOICE OF NORTH AND WEST VANCOUVER December 13, 1991 The civii conspiracy charges are part of an ongoing suit launched earlier this year by Can-Dive Ser- vices Ltd. and Laurentian Pacific Insurance Co., the bonding agent for Can-Dive on the pipeline pro- ject. The suit is set to go to B.C. Supreme Court next August; it names Pacific Coast Energy Corp., Westcoast Energy [ac.. Moporrison-Knudsen Co. Inc., Nor- thern Construction Co. Ltd. (NCC) and INTEC Engineering Inc. as defendants. Can-Dive was subcontracted by NCC to assist in laying the pipeline and installing pipeline support structures. Can-Dive deployed remotely operated subsea vehicles for the project and North Vancouver- based International Hard Suits Inc. (an offshoot of Can-Dive) supplied divers equipped with Newtsuit atmospheric diving suits. Texas-based INTEC provided NCC with tender and engineering design information. The work started by Can-Dive in October was to take an estimated 35 days, based on a relatively smooth seabed profile provided by IN- TEC. But the job took about five months because the diving com- pany encountered steep under- water slopes along the pipeline’s Georgia Strait route. In part the civil conspiracy ac- tion alleges: @ that the defendants conspired to ‘‘unlawfully delay considera- tion’’ of Cati-Dive’s claims; @ that the companies conspired to avoid the expense and liability of Pacific Coast, V/estcoast and INTEC to properly design span supports for the pipeline. Earlier this year Laurentian Pacific filed a lien against the pipeiine. According to Can-Dive presi- #2 Automotives... &@ Classified Ads. . GE Ecolnfo : EB Editorial Page i Home & Garden . 84 pages Classifieds 986-6222 Youth perspective on majer issues ZAP section: 32 Office, Editorial 985-2131 Display Advertising 980-0511 Distribution 986-1337 25¢ 0. Can-Dive alleges conspiracy in $6.7M gas pipeline claim A NORTH Vancouver deep-sea diving company, secking to collect the $6.7 million it claims it is owed for work dene on the Vancouver Island natural gas pipeline, has filed civil conspiracy charges against five companies in- volved in the pipeline construciion project. By Michael Becker News Reporter — dent Fhil Nuytten, the suit defen- dants applied unsuccessfully to have the lien disallowed, but they then posted a $12-million bond to have it lifted and allow for the flow of natural gas to Vancouver Island. Meanwhile the dispute has resulted in the ‘'freeze-frarmning™’ of the original Can-Dive and the formation of a new Can-Dive. "We froze the old Can-Dive right in its tracks about a month ago,’ Nuytten said. Rather than filing for bankruptcy, Can-Dive sought telief under the CCAA (Com- panies, Creditors Arrangement Act). Nuytten said the move bought Can-Dive time to regroup and address its creditors. If Can-Dive is successful in its suit, its cred- itors, the major one being Laurentian Pacific, will be repaid 109%. Can-Dive has pledged to repay no less than 60% of monies ow- ing. Although it’s business as usval at Can-Dive, Nuytten says the company has lost millions of dollars worth of business original- ly lined up for this year. Said Nuytten, ‘‘When the bon- ding company was essentially pay- ing the bills earlier this year, we had difficulty getting any bonding for other projects because all of our resources were tied up in this case. “We've lost millions in gross revenues as a result of not being able to bond projects that we al- teady had in mind. We couldn’t bid on other projects because we couldn’t get bonded. That has fi- nally been resolved. Trevor Lautens .... @ Mailbox .. Paul St. Pierre @ What's Goin; On .. Weather Saturday and Sunday, cloudy with a chance of showers. Highs 7°C, Low 2°C. Second Class Registration Number 3885 REACHING EVERY NEWS photo Miko Waketiotd A country Christmas APRIL JOHNSTON and Mike McNeely cuddle two-day-old twin lambs, Holly and Mistletoe, born Dec. 7 at Maplewood Farms. The farm invites everyone to a Christmas celebration this weekend from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (both Saturday and Sunday) with carollers on hand to enter- tain. And don’t miss the drive-by light display occurring nightly from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.