IHH managing director & CEO Dr Tan See Leng:
KUALA LUMPUR: IHH Healthcare Bhd
expects its Turkish unit to close deals on its Bulgarian foray this year, said managing director and chief executive officer Dr Tan See Leng.
"We have cleared most of the hurdles so we should be on track to close it this year," he told reporters after the company's AGM in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.
In April this year, the healthcare provider's Turkish unit, Acibadem Healthcare Group, had signed agreements to enter the Bulgarian market by acquiring 100% of Tokuda Group and merge it with Bulgaria's City Clinic Group.
Upon completion of the RM437 million deal, Acibadem will be the leading private healthcare operator in Bulgaria with four hospitals having some 750 beds.
"We have also delivered on our projects pipeline and executed transformational acquisitions in India, thus joining Malaysia, Singapore and Turkey as our fourth home market," he said, adding that the group expected demand for quality healthcare to remain strong, going forward.
Tan said while the people might cut their expenditure on discretionary goods when the economy got tough, they would not be prepared to compromise on their health.
IHH now operates close to 10,000 hospital beds, a target it had set during its initial public offering to achieve by end-2017.
The 10,000 beds are across 49 hospitals in nine countries, and it is slated to add another 3,000 beds over the next two years.
"We hope by next year or 2018 we will have a fifth home market," he added.
On Thursday, IHH reported a higher pre-tax profit of RM355.30 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016, from RM232.94 million a year earlier.
Its revenue improved to RM2.48 billion versus RM2 billion previously, due to sustained organic growth at existing hospitals across all home markets and continued ramp up of newer hospitals.
It maintained a net gearing of 0.19 times as of March 2016, with cash holdings of about RM2.1 billion.
At the AGM, shareholders approved all resolutions tabled including dividends of three sen per share, payable on July 18. - Bernama
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