KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 16): KNM Group Bhd said Credit Guarantee and Investment Facility (CGIF), a trust fund managed by the Asian Development Bank, has made repayment on behalf of the group to its bondholders in Thailand.

In the bourse filing, KNM said it received a reimbursement demand notice from CGIF via email on Wednesday (Dec 15), after the latter made the repayment to the bondholders.

“The company will enter into bilateral negotiations with CGIF in order to satisfy the reimbursement demand in a timely manner.

“In fact, the board of directors and management of the company has carried out detailed discussions with the management of CGIF and is working closely with CGIF to implement the necessary actions to resolve the payment to CGIF,” it added.

KNM said the non-payment of the principal sum and coupon payment on the Thai bonds was due to a “funding and timing mismatch”. 

“The company is concurrently evaluating several proposals to raise the required funding to meet our financial obligation to CGIF as soon as possible,” it said.

The group also stressed that it is not classified as a Practice Note 17 affected listed issuer, in accordance with the PN17 relief measures granted by Bursa Malaysia.

KNM had missed the principal and coupon payments on its bonds issued in Thailand worth 2.78 billion baht (RM352.57 million), which had matured on Nov 18.

The group announced then that the non-payment was due to challenges that arose from the Covid-19 pandemic and the unfavourable operating conditions of its Thailand-based subsidiary, Impress Ethanol Co Ltd (IECL).

On Nov 22, KNM proposed a private placement of 10% of its share capital to raise up to RM53.46 million to reduce its debt (RM30 million) and raise working capital (RM22.16 million).

Two days later, KNM released its financial results for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021, with the group slipping into the red with a net loss of RM32.51 million,  compared with a net profit of RM10.56 million in the immediate preceding quarter and RM17.98 million a year earlier.

The group’s board of directors also saw changes on Dec 1, with the appointment of three new non-independent non-executive directors, James Beltran, Datuk Indera Naresh Mohan and Ravindransingham Balasingham.

Shares of KNM closed unchanged at 14 sen on Thursday (Dec 16), giving the oil and gas group a market capitalisation of RM468.04 million.