KUALA LUMPUR (June 22): Consumer edible oil manufacturer C.I. Holdings Bhd (CIHB) has denied a report that it has an interest to acquire Edra Global Energy Bhd, an outfit that houses 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB)’s power assets.

In its filing with Bursa Malaysia this afternoon, CIHB said it has never entered into any Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA) with Maybank Investment Bank Bhd in relation to 1MDB’s proposed plans to monetise the its power assets.

Last Friday, The Star in its Business section had reported that CIHB was one of the parties among Tenaga Nasional Bhd, YTL Power International Bhd and Malakoff Corp Bhd that had expressed their interest in the acquisition of Edra Global.

The report further elaborated that all four parties have signed the NDA with Maybank Investment Bank to facilitate the negotiation.

“Further, CIHB has neither entered into any arrangement or understanding with 1MDB, Tenaga or any other corporate entities in relation thereto nor have we contemplated venturing into any business related to the said power assets,” CIHB’s filing read.

CIHB said it wishes to focus on and expand its current business of manufacturing and packing of consumer edible oil via its wholly-owned subsidiary Continental Resources Sdn Bhd, especially with the latter’s recent acquisition of 60% interest in Palmtop Vegeoil Products Sdn Bhd.

“Notwithstanding the above, CIHB will continue to be on the lookout for any possible mergers and acquisitions relating to Fast Moving Consumer Goods so as to expand its current portfolio of consumer staples,” it added.

As of market break, CIHB was trading at RM2.39 per share, one sen or 0.42% higher, it has a market capitalisation of RM385.56 million.

(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)