20100512 1634 Malaysia Corporate News.

The sports betting licence issued to tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan’s Ascot Sports early this year comes with several conditions attached.

• Ascot Sports will be allowed to operate in only 200 of Berjaya Sports Toto’s 680 outlets in non-Muslim areas in major towns and online betting would not be allowed. 
• It is also understood that Ascot Sports is unlikely to be ready for the FIFA World Cup. “Ascot Sports has been busy preparing to commence operations but it is expected to start business only in Aug/Sep,” the sources added.
• Berjaya Corp yesterday requested for a suspension of trading today pending an announcement of an acquisition from a related party and a capital raising exercise. It is understood that Ascot Sports is likely to be eventually acquired by Berjaya Corp. (Starbiz)

News that a sports betting licence has already been issued to Ascot Sports is a surprise to us, given that the government has not made an official announcement on the matter. The smaller-than-expected distribution outlets are slightly disappointing and this could reduce the likelihood that Tanjong's PMP and Multi-Purpose's Magnum Corp outlets would eventually be roped in to further expand the distribution points. But we were not surprised that the impending legal sports betting activities would not involve internet betting. Timingwise, we had earlier said that even if a licence was issued in the near-term, it is unlikely that the impending operator would be able to take bets in time for the World Cup - which is just one month away. We do not expect a sports betting licence to affect Genting Malaysia’s casino operations. Although B-Toto’s outlets would be used as distribution points, we do not expect a material impact to its ongoing NFO and lotto sales.

Tenaga wants new coal-powered plants built in Peninsula Malaysia to generate power at competitive rates so as not to burden consumers, said president and CEO Datuk Seri Che Khalib.

• Although Peninsula has an estimated 40% reserve margin, this margin is expected to shrink to 20% by 2015, which is the minimum consideration for secure power supply. 
•  Meanwhile, Che Khalib also confirmed that the undersea cable project from Sarawak to Peninsula has been scrapped. “That said, the government is still looking at the option of bringing power from Sarawak,” he added. (Financial Daily)

Although disappointing, news that the undersea cable project has been scrapped is not a surprise as press reports and Tenaga have highlighted this possibility several times over the past few months. For Tenaga, the scrapping of this project meant that the national utility company would now need to look at coal- and gas-fired power plants for future plant ups given Peninsula Malaysia's limited hydropower potential.

The number of withdrawal applications made by Employees Provident Fund (EPF) members to invest in approved unit trust funds under the EPF-Members Investment Scheme (EPF-MIS) is expected to exceed 1m anmually by 2015. Federation of Investment Managers Malaysia (FiMM) president Tunku Ya'acob Tunku Abdullah said the number of applications is anticipated to be over 500,000 compared with 300,000 in 2007.

• As at Mar-10, net asset value (NAV) under the EPF-MIS is more than RM15bn, which is about 7.4% of the total unit trust industry's NAV of RM204bn. "Each year, EPF members represent 30% of the volume of business, while the remaining 70% are cash-pay customers. 
• "We expect the ratio to stay the same but with the implementation of the E-PPA (Elektronik - Pilihan Pelaburan Ahli), EPF members don't have to wait for two weeks to find out whether their applications have been approved or not as the system can process it in two days only," he said.
• The EPF-MIS was launched 15 years ago to allow EPF members to invest part of their savings in the approved unit trust funds. Tunku Ya'acob said the electronic processing system has been implemented in stages since Jan-10. So far, 16 unit trust companies are already onboard the E-PPA system, while another 25 will hop on later. (BT)

An expert has suggested that wind power be harnessed to provide an alternative source of energy in the country. “Offshore wind power generation, for instance, is capable of producing electricity at a high capacity just like a nuclear power plant. It is also more competitive compared to solar power,” Principal fellow of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Solar Energy Research Institute (Seri) Dr Mohamad Yusof Sulaiman said. (Financial Daily)

Rebar prices in Malaysia are unchanged for the fourth consecutive week despite mills' efforts to push up the market. "Mills try to push prices up, but demand is not there yet to support prices," said a Singapore-based trader with operations in Malaysia.

• Mills are even offering trade discounts of RM50-100 per tonne to push sales, according to a source. Rebar continues to trade at RM2,250-2,350 per tonne, unchanged since early April due to slow demand, mill officials and traders said. This is below prevalent offers of RM2,350-2,400 per tonne, also unchanged since last month. (Metal Bulletin)

Alliance Financial Group said it has identified a replacement for Datuk Bridget Lai as group chief executive officer of its banking unit. Alliance Bank Malaysia will announce the name once the appointment has been endorsed by Bank Negara Malaysia. (Bloomberg)

Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Omar, former DRB-HICOM adviser for automotive, is tipped to become chairman of UMW Holdings, replacing Tan Sri Asmat Kamaludin. Abdul Rahman has been offered the post and an official announcement is expected by the end of next month, sources said.

• His appointment may lead to the shake-up of the automotive-to-oil-and-gas group's top management, now led by president and chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Abdul Halim Harun. Abdul Halim is expected to leave UMW by end-Oct when his contract expires, sources said. 
• Abdul Rahman has emerged as a favourite to help make UMW stronger, given his vast experience and network in the corporate world, especially the automotive sector. He was DRB-HICOM executive director from Feb 06-Dec 07 and chairman of Edaran Otomobil Nasional (EON) from Feb 06-Jul 08. (BT)

UMW Holdings is still waiting for the right timing to list its oil and gas division, said President and Group CEO Datuk Abdul Halim Harun. "Hopefully, the listing takes place sometime this year and the timing must be right," he said. "We want make sure everything is in good condition. Then, we will start to list but there is no time frame yet," he added. (Bernama, BT)

Petra Perdana has proposed a private placement of up to 10% of its paid-up share capital or 29.76m new shares to investor(s) to be identified at an issue price to be determined later. After the completion of the proposed placement, the company has proposed to undertake a renounceable rights issue at an issue price and entitlement basis to be determined later, with new free detachable warrants. Proceeds will be used to repay borrowings and purchase new vessels (BMSB)

Astro says it is on track to signing up 0.5m B.yond subscribers by the end of January 2011 as it introduces more high-definition content. "We are going to have more sports content on high-definition coverage, which is a key driver for the take-up of our Astro B.yond subscriber base," DEO Datuk Rohana Rozhan said.

• Currently, Astro B.yond customers can watch HBO movies, National Geographic, History programmes and selected English Premier League football games on high definition. Next month, they can also watch the World Cup matches live on high definition. This year, Astro will be introducing 12 channels, including 10 dedicated to bringing all 64 World Cup matches live in both high and standard definition. (BT)

India telco regulator recommended ending restrictions on telco firms selling out, a move which will help consolidation in the world's fastest growing telecoms market. Currently, India restricts telecoms firms from selling majority stakes within three years of getting licence. India's telco regulator also suggested telcos pay a one-time fee for holding radiospectrum beyond 6.2MHz based on 3G prices, a move that will hit established operators like Bharti Airtel and Vodafone.

• India currently grants additional radio airwaves to firms when they reach subscriberaddition milestones, only charging a usage fee for the resource. The recommendations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) have to be accepted by the telecoms ministry before they become law. (Economic Times of India)