Tien Wah Press sells printing assets

KUALA LUMPUR: Tien Wah Press Holding Bhd (TWP) has proposed to sell its printing assets in Malaysia to executive chairman and major shareholder for RM1.29mil cash, as the company shifts production volume to Vietnam and Indonesia.

“The disposal will realise the value of some of the assets which are no longer used or required by the group,” it said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia today.

It plans to use proceeds from disposal of machineries held by unit Tien Wah Press (Malaya) Sdn Bhd (TWPM) as working capital.

TWPM is engaged in rotogravure printing specialising in cigarette cartons and consumer goods packaging, and photolithography printing specialising in cartons, labels packaging and advertising materials.

Based on the latest unaudited quarterly results for the financial period ended Sept 30, the net book value of the assets was RM450,000.

“The expected gains arising from the disposal is RM843,000,” it said.

The group, in July last year, had announced a plan to cease its printing business after a major customer - British American Tobacco (M) Bhd - closed down its cigarette manufacturing business in Malaysia.

The move to Vietnam and Indonesia, it said in July, was to improve its strategic position to service the customer and reduce the group’s operating cost over the longer term.

The disposal is targeted for completion by the end of March.