Friday, January 13, 2012

20120113 1027 Malaysia Corporate Related News.

CIMB to conclude negotiations for Philippines' Bank of Commerce
CIMB Group Holdings group chief executive Datuk Seri Nazir Razak hopes to conclude negotiations with brewer San Miguel Corp on the acquisition of a stake in Philippines' Bank of Commerce within the current quarter (1Q2012). Nazir remained mum about the stake size and cost of acquisition, saying that there are no definitive details as yet because both parties are still in negotiations. (StarBiz)

Is RHB-MBSB merger on?
With the merger plans of RHB Capital and OSK Holdings coming closer, the question arises again as to whether the former will contemplate a takeover of Malaysia Building Society (MBSB), a non-bank lender to civil servants. This talk arose from speculation last October that the EPF was mulling over a move to merge both businesses following an announcement by RHBCap last September that it had written to BNM seeking permission to start talks with OSK. EPF holders a 44.8% stake in RHBCap and 65.5% stake in MBSB. (StarBiz)

Sime to intervene in E&O minority’s suit against SC
Sime Darby has received the green light to intervene in a legal challenge that an Eastern & Oriental (E&O) minority shareholder has filed against the Securities Commission (SC). Sime Darby has just acquired a 30% stake in E&O. Sime Darby said the court had allowed a bid by its unit, Sime Darby nominees SB, to intervene in the judicial review application by E&O minority shareholder Michael Chow Keat Thye against the SC.(Financial Daily)

AirAsia X to withdraw flights to four cities
The long-haul budget carrier yesterday announced that it would be withdrawing its services to Mumbai by next month, while flights to New Delhi, London and Paris will all stop in late March. All passengers affected by the route cuts will be given the option of either flying on an alternative airline, obtain a full refund or be re-routed to another AirAsia X destination. It is understood that passengers opting for an alternative airline will be transferred to Malaysia Airlines. (BT)

Bina Puri confirms talks with Pakistan over highway privatization deal
Bina Puri is negotiating the financial and legal aspects of a privatization concession agreement with the National Highway Authority in Islamabad, Pakistan. It had received the letter of intent from the highway authority. The letter of intent was for the conversion of existing four-lane Karachi-Hyderabad super highway into a six-lane motorway on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis.(Financial Daily)

SapCrest buys 2 pipelay vessels
SapuraCrest Petroleum’s wholly-owned units TL Offshore PLSV1 Ltd and TL Offshore PLSV2 Ltd have entered into contracts with IHC Offshore and Marine BV for the construction and purchase of two 550-tonne piplelay support vessels.(Financial Daily)

Proton: Khazanah told bidders to show proof of funding
Sources familiar with the issue said that Khazanah Nasional Berhad has asked the interested  bidders for their stake in Proton to show proof of funding by next week. It is learnt that the  sovereign wealth fund has set aside appointment dates for the whole of next week to assess  the funding mechanisms of the various bidders. While the dates are nto certain, it is  undertstood that Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary’s DRB-Hicom will meet with Khazanah in  the middle of the week while Datuk Seri Nadzmi Mohd Salleh is likely to meet Khazanah  earlier in the week. (Financial Daily)

Felda: Should have only one strategic partner
Sources said that Felda Global Ventures should ideally have only one strategic global partner,  although talks are ongoing with several parties. A source said the partner would bring in the  know-how and capabilities in the downstream activities. The source added that the purpose  of the strategic partner is to grow the business across the value chain from being too reliant  on upstream to mid-stream and downstream. (Bernama)

QSR: Tabung Haji says no invite from MCCM for joint acquisition
Tabung Haji MD and CEO Datuk Paduka Ismee Ismail said Lembaga Tabung Haji (Tabung Haji)  has not received any invitations from the Malay Chamber of Commerce Malaysia (MCCM) to  jointly acquire Kulim Bhd's stake in QSR Brands Bhd. Ismee was speaking to reporters on the  sidelines of the Cross Fertilisation and Cross Assignment programme handover to Talent  Corporation Malaysia Bhd (TalentCorp) Tuesday. (Business Times)

TM: Keen to put in bid for DTTB
Telekom Malaysia is keen to submit its bid for the Digital Terrestrial Television Broadcasting  (DTTB) when the request for proposal is made,  possibly by the end of  1Q 2012. TM group  CEO said the company would like to see the RFP first in order to determine the extent of the  role that TM can play.  According to sources, for those wanting to submit a proposal, one of  the requirements is for them to have a technical partner. TM is still looking for one as the  previous party it was talking to, Broadcast Australia has since teamed up with Celcom Axiata  Bhd.  (Starbiz)

Manulife: Eyes 15% rise in customer base
Manulife Malaysia expects to see an improvement of between 10-15% in its customer base  by year-end through enhanced promotional efforts. Its latest initiative is the Manulife  branding on the Kuala Lumpur hop-on-hop-off tourist bus.  Manulife Malaysia group  CEO Michael Chan Yui Lung said that the company also wants to increase their presence in Sabah  and Sarawak while sustaining growth in key areas of Peninsular Malaysia. Commenting on  plans for Manulife Malaysia in 2012, he said in addition to Sibu and Kuching, the company  intends to expand its footprint with a new office in Kota Kinabalu. (Business Times)

MBM Resources: 78% owned OMI invests RM103m in alloy wheel plant
MBM Resources’ subsidiary Oriental Metal Industries (OMI) is investing RM103m in an alloy  wheel manufacturing factory in Rawang, with the annual capacity to produce 1m units. MBM  Resources said the investment would see its 78% owned OMI becoming the largest Tier-1  integrated wheel manufacturer in the country. MBMR  MD Looi Kok Loon said  they are  targeting to export about 35% of their products. MBM Resources said phase one of the  project, which is next to OMI’s existing wheel module assembly plant, was scheduled to be  completed by the 4Q 2012 and fully completed by 3Q 2015. (Financial Daily)

Takaso: To tap Papua New Guinea timber sector
Takaso Resources, which is considering to acquire Kayumas (PNG) Ltd, can look forward to an  estimated net profit of US$72m (RM226m) over a  9-year period from the latter's logging  project in Papua New Guinea. Takaso director Chin Boon Kim said the company will be  conducting a due diligence over the estimates and if all goes well including approvals from  shareholders, it will finalise the proposed acquisition within 3 months. He also said that once  the deal is signed, Takaso will fork out RM6.5m as working capital in stages. Chin added that  the acquisition cost of Kayumas and the type of fund-raising exercise will be determined  once Takaso finalises the percentage of Kayumas shares it intends to acquire. (Business  Times)

Tebrau Teguh: Land sale 143% above NBV of RM11.6m
Tebrau Teguh is disposing of two parcels of commercial land in Plentong, Johor for RM28.3m,  which is estimated to be RM16.67m or 143.7% above the NBV of RM11.6m as at Dec 31,  2010. The company said the RM28.3m was based on a valuation report by Messrs. Raine  Horne International Zaki + Partners dated June 17, 2011.  The total net book value as per  audited financial statements for the year ended Dec 31, 2010 is RM11.6m. (Financial Daily)

Supermax: 340m bonus shares to go ex on Jan 26
Supermax Corporation’s 340.1m new bonus shares will go ex on Jan 26. The company said  the shares were issued on a one-for-one basis. The entitlement date is Jan 30. (Financial  Daily)

Konsortium Transnational: Eyes 60,000 passengers by 2013
Konsortium Transnasional Bhd (KTB) targets to double its Nice Executive Coach membership  to 50,000 from 25,000 currently by the end of the year.KTB executive director and  COO  Tengku Hasmadi Tengku Hashim said the target would be driven by its luxury coach with onboard tablet infotainment system.  Nice Executive Coach is the first public transportation  company to install the RM20m state-of-the-art infotainment system in Malaysia. By the end  of 1Q 2012, a total of 45 Nice Executive coaches will be installed with the Blue ICE on-board  infotainment system, followed later by 150 Plusliner and Transnasional coaches. The tablet is  mounted at the back of every seat, allowing the passenger to watch movies, listen to music,  play games, browse the internet and read the  news and more while travelling.  (Business  Times)

Faber Group: Subsidiary faces RM11.2m suit from sub-contractor
Faber Group’s subsidiary Faber LLC is facing a suit from a sub-contractor, Sweet Home  Technical Works LLC, for services provided for housing projects in Abu Dhabi. Faber said that  it had received a statement of claim dated Jan 10 for AED13.12m (RM11.2m), which Faber  LLC is disputing. It also said that the Al Dhafra Court of First Instance, Justice Department,  Emirate of Abu Dhabi had fixed the hearing of the statement of claim on Monday, Feb 6,  2012. (Financial Daily)

TatGiap acquires 60% stake in Buminox
Tatt Giap Group Bhd has acquired a 60% stake in Buminox Sdn Bhd for a total cash consideration of RM3.6m. Upon completion of the proposed acquisition, Buminox shall be a 60% subsidiary of TatGiap. The cost for the proposed acquisition will be funded internally. (Business Times)

Atlan 3Q net profit dips 9.9% to RM8.33m
Atlan Holdings Bhd net profit for the third quarter ended Nov 30, 2011 fell 9.9% to RM8.33m from RM9.25m a year earlier, mainly due to lower revenue in the duty free segment. Its revenue for the quarter dipped 5.35% to RM177.57m from RM187.63m in 2010. (The Edge)

TAS Offshore’s earnings improve, RM2.2m net profit in 2Q
TAS Offshore Bhd’s earnings continued to improve, with net profit of RM2.227 million in the second quarter ended Nov 30, 2011 compared with net loss of RM184,000 a year ago, boosted by sale of its tugboats under construction. (The Edge)

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