The making of Malaysia’s power IPO

1MDB acquired Ananda

UNTIL May 2012, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) did not have any experience in running power plants. In a short span of two and half years, it is poised to become the country’s largest independent power producer (IPP), thanks to the country’s booming power generation sector. Established in 2009 with a seed capital of RM5bil raised from the bond market, 1MDB was going nowhere with its initial investments in the oil and gas sector that tied up some US$2.3bil (RM7.3bil) of its funds overseas. With paltry returns from the investments and without cashflow, the fund could not get its property projects going in the domestic market.

However, the booming power generation segment in the domestic market coupled with the strategic acquisition of power plants from T. Ananda Krishna’s Usaha Tegas group paved the way for the fund to get its act together.