That "whatever reason" is his mum falling sick. That fact has...

That "whatever reason" is his mum falling sick. That fact has been made apparent to everyone here, including yourself.
His decision to take the leave of absence is most likely coincidental. Regardless, it's a leave of absence, he hasn't quit the company.

LD made a fair point that his leave could've impacted the debt restructure, hence why it's taking so long.

My main concern about all of this is the lack of updates. Understand they're hesitant to release any news because of how it may affect investor sentiment, however, total radio silence only makes me think they're getting absolutely shafted on a deal and are getting no where with negotiations. Purely speculation at this point.

Someone mentioned a while ago that Thiess might be more interested in an AR1 bankruptcy where they get first pick of the scraps. Good theory, but I can't find anything to support that, particularly in Thiess's history.