KUALA LUMPUR (April 26): Based on corporate announcements and news flow today, the companies that may be in focus on Thursday (April 27) could be the following: Yinson, PUC Founder, PetChem, Astro, Texchem, Sunsuria, Bursa Malaysia, Willowglen, MCIL, Perak Corp, Thriven Global, TM, Hektar REIT, Kronologi Asia and RHB Bank.
Integrated offshore services provider Yinson Holdings Bhd's wholly-owned unit Yinson Clover Ltd (YCL) has been awarded a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) charter contract worth US$1 billion (RM4.4 billion).
The contract, awarded by Repsol SA's subsidiary Talisman Vietnam 07/03 BV (TLV), entails the supply, operation and maintenance of an FPSO facility for the Ca Rong Do field development located in Block 07/03 offshore Vietnam.
Repsol is the operator of the field, while PetroVietnam, PetroVietnam Exploration Production Corp, Mubadala Petroleum and Pan Pacific Petroleum are the other owners of the Ca Rong Do field.
The group said the contract is for a firm period of 10 years, with five yearly extension options exercisable by TLV.
ACE-Market listed PUC Founder (MSC) Bhd has acquired Singapore-based IT business solutions provider Enovax Pte Ltd for SG$2 million (RM6.29 million) from its founder Erwin Foo Yong Jio, the company announced today.
The acquisition follows a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) inked between the two parties on April 11 to negotiate the terms of acquisition.
In a statement, PUC Founder chief executive officer Cheong Chia Chou said the acquisition will contribute to the group’s expansion and long-term growth plans to become a leading digital services provider.
Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd (PetChem) has allocated RM4 billion in capital expenditure (capex) for its financial year ending Dec 31, 2017, with the bulk of expenditure earmarked for its projects at the Pengerang Integrated Complex (PIC) in Johor.
The integrated chemical producer’s chairman Md Arif Mahmood told a press conference that allocation for the year will be funded internally, as it still has RM7.4 billion in cash as at Dec 31 last year.
PetChem managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Sazali Hamzah said this also includes investment for the recently-approved isononanol plant (INA) located within the PIC.
He said the plant’s total cost of US$442 million (RM1.92 billion) will be spread over three years, with the group allocating “a small amount” for this year.
Pay TV operator Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd is partnering South Korea's content and media group CJ E&M to co-produce intellectual properties (IPs), as well as to market and distribute Korean content in Asean.
The partnership will kick-start later this year with collaborations on eSports, co-production, distribution of content from Korean channel tvN Asia and movies, and a Korean festival in Malaysia, Astro said in a statement today.
Diversified group Texchem Resources Bhd is set to expand its Sushi King operations to Indonesia, after receiving green light from authorities there.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, Texchem said it has incorporated a company in Indonesia called PT Sushi King Group Indonesia to operate the Japanese cuisine restaurant business.
Property developer Sunsuria Bhd hopes to have access to infrastructure and development projects in the government and private sector, through its acquisition of a controlling stake in a firm that holds a Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) licence.
Sunsuria said acquisition of the 51% equity in Prosperspan Construction Sdn Bhd for RM408,000 will provide the property developer with capabilities to venture into the construction sector, which is expected to grow by 8% or RM170 billion in 2017.
Prosperspan will be used to engage in upcoming construction, engineering, and similar ancillary services and activities in Malaysia, it said in a statement.
Bursa Malaysia Bhd's net profit rose 13% to RM56.63 million in the first quarter ended March 31, 2017 (1QFY17), from RM49.94 million a year earlier, as share trade income from the securities market segment rose.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, the stock exchange operator said quarterly revenue climbed to RM142.69 million in 1QFY17, from RM133.93 million in 1QFY16.
Moving forward, Bursa said performance in the securities market is forecast to continue with the expected improvements in the global and domestic economic conditions.
In the derivatives market, however, uncertain weather conditions and volatile crude oil prices continued to underpin trading of future contracts.
Nonetheless, Bursa said it will continue with its initiatives in creating a vibrant and sustainable Malaysian capital market.
Willowglen MSC Bhd’s net profit surged by 91.35% to RM4.98 million or 2.05 sen for the first quarter ended March 31, 2017 (1QFY17), from RM2.6 million or 1.07 sen a year ago, mainly due to higher turnover from its Singapore operations.
Quarterly revenue grew 49% to RM38.32 million, from RM25.71 million in 1QFY16.
Moving forward, Willowglen said its main revenue will continue to be derived from SCADA and integrated video surveillance systems in transportation, power, water, waste-water treatment and housing estate projects.
Timber and media tycoon Tan Sri Tiong Hiew King's health is improving and his condition is stable, said Media Chinese International (MCIL).
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, MCIL said its 82-year-old group executive chairman has been receiving specialist treatment in Singapore since last Thursday (April 20) and the attending doctor is satisfied with progress of the treatment.
"The doctor has also advised that Tan Sri Tiong requires more space and privacy to facilitate his recovery," added MCIL.
Last week, local media reported Tiong, who is also the executive chairman of Rimbunan Hijau group of companies, was admitted to a hospital in Singapore after he was found to have suffered a stroke.
Perak Corp Bhd said it is unable to issue its annual report for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2016 (FY16) to Bursa Securities within the stipulated time frame of not more than four months from the close of the financial year.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, Perak Corp said it has failed to issue the FY16 annual report by April 30, as its external auditors, Messrs KPMG PLT, require more time to resolve the substantial outstanding audit and accounting issues with the management of the company.
Perak Corp said this is because it is the first year for KPMG to handle its account, after Messrs Ernst & Young resigned last year.
Property developer Thriven Global Bhd said its audited net loss for financial year ended Dec 31, 2016 (FY16) was much larger, as compared with the unaudited net loss, due to impairment on disposal of Bukit Tunku land here.
In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, Thriven Global disclosed its audited net loss for FY16 amounted to RM10.15 million, equivalent to a deviation of RM4.59 million or 82%, from a net loss of RM5.56 million it had reported before the audit.
The group explained that the deviation was caused by impairment loss arising from the write-down of the cost of a freehold 10,226-sq-metre land at Bukit Tunku to its net realisable value.
Thriven Global said at the time of reporting its unaudited financial result for FY16 that the group was still considering alternative options for the Bukit Tunku land, and without the receipt of down payment and a binding purchase offer for the land, no impairment or write-down was proposed.
Fixed line telecommunication operator Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) aims to double the Internet speed for all its UniFi subscribers by the end of this year.
So far, only 22% of its 640,000 UniFi customers have had their Internet speed upgraded due to network availability, said TM deputy chief executive officer Datuk Bazlan Osman.
The initiative is in line with Budget 2017's provision that Internet service providers increase the speed of their fixed broadband, with no change in the price of the subscription.
Bazlan said the average revenue per user (ARPU) is not expected to be impacted, as there is no change in price for the UniFi service.
He also hoped the doubling of speed offered at the same price will result in the increase in subscription for TM’s other value-added services, such as HyppTV.
In the space of two months in 2017, TM has expanded its LTE network to over 6,000 sites nationwide, covering more than 60% of the nation.
Mall operator Hektar Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) is undertaking new asset enhancement initiatives (AEIs) worth RM62 million for two of its malls.
The initiatives will see the creation of up to a total of 60,000 sq ft of net lettable area (NLA), said its manager Hektar Asset Management Sdn Bhd.
Subsequent to the REIT’s annual general meeting, Hektar Asset Management chief executive officer Datuk Hisham Othman told reporters that strategies for 2017 remains three-pronged, namely implementing AEIs to increase NLA, focusing on completion of acquisition of 1Segamat, as well as improving efficiency in tenant management to optimise rental returns.
The AEIs will see a revamp of its Landmark Central mall in Kulim, Kedah, with expected completion this August, as well as its Subang Parade mall in Subang Jaya, to be completed in mid-2018.
Corporate data protection service provider Kronologi Asia Bhd is optimistic on a better financial year 2017 (FY17), as it looks to deepen its penetration of the Indian market and widen its presence in Southeast Asia.
It revealed this in an announcement on its new three-pronged growth strategy on Bursa Malaysia today, after acquiring full control of Quantum Storage (India) Pte Ltd (QSI) last October, which comes with an annual profit guarantee of US$1 million in FY16 and FY17.
QSI contributed three months of the group's revenue and profit in FY16 and was a factor for the 32.5% increase in total revenue that year to RM81.3 million, and the 172% increase in profit before tax to RM7.8 million, it noted.
RHB Bank Bhd, the country's fourth largest lender by assets, expects its performance for financial year ending Dec 31, 2017 (FY17) to improve over FY2016.
It is also expecting its loan growth to improve in FY17, with the small and medium enterprise (SME) segment as one of the growth drivers, its group managing director Datuk Khairussaleh Ramli told a press conference, after the group’s annual general meeting today.
Besides providing loans to SMEs, he added RHB will provide the ecosystem to help SMEs grow their business, such as financial supply chain, e-retail system and others.
Last year, SMEs consisted about 16% of its entire portfolio, an improvement from 14% when the group first embarked on this segment about two years ago.