Ta Ann and Sarawak state government in new oil palm JV projects

KUALA LUMPUR: Ta Ann Holdings Bhd is making a second go at doing joint-venture (JV) oil palm development projects with Sarawak state-owned Land Custody and Development Authority (Pelita) after an aborted earlier attempt.

Ta Ann had to cancel earlier planned projects with Pelita - a statutory body under the Sarawak Ministry of Rural and Land Development - to develop jointly three parcels of land in Mukah and Kota Samarahan totalling about 39,000ha. These agreements, signed on Sept 28, 2012, were revoked due to the land owners’ lack of interest.

However, Ta Ann’s unit Ta Ann Plantation Sdn Bhd (TAP) signed two new agreements on Monday with the authority’s unit Pelita Holdings Sdn Bhd to implement oil palm development projects in partnership with the Sarawak state government and native customary rights (NCR) owners.

In a statement to Bursa Malaysia, the company said it would have a 60% stake while Pelita Holdings as trustee of NCR owners would have 30% and Pelita itself 10%. (For the 2012 agreenment, the proposed equity interests had been 55%, 30% and 15% respectively.)

This time the JV companies plan to develop the parcels of NCR land situated in Sibu, with aggregate gross area of 17,017ha (of which an estimated 10,210.2ha are plantable area) and NCR land situated in Kapit with aggregate gross area of 11,178ha (of which an estimated 6,706.8ha are plantable).

The eventual issued and paid-up capitals of the JV companies are expected to be RM51mil for the Sibu land development and RM33.5mil for the Kapit land development.

Ta Ann called the latest projects “replacement projects” for the aborted JV oil palm development projects under the agreements signed with Pelita back in 2012.

“Due to the lack of interests by the land owners in the projects under 2012 agreements, both Pelita and TAP decided not to proceed with the projects under the 2012 agreements and to revoke the 2012 agreements by mutual consent,” it said.

Ta Ann shares rose 1 sen to close trading at RM3.93 on Monday.