PETALING JAYA: Datuk Loo Pang Kee, co-founder and group managing director of NPC Resources Bhd
, is looking at privatising the palm oil producer in a transaction that could cost him at least RM144.9mil.
Loo and his private vehicle Jubilant Ventures Sdn Bhd are still in “exploratory discussions” and there is no certainty that the proposal will be implemented.
Nonetheless, a Bursa Malaysia filing yesterday mentioned that both Loo and Jubilant Ventures, being the major shareholders of NPC, are considering acquiring shares not owned by them at RM2.82 each.
“If the proposal materialises, the price in which NPC will be privatised will not be lower than the above price,” shareholders were notified.
Investors are also advised to exercise caution when dealing in shares in NPC, following the announcement yesterday.
Of the 116.69 million outstanding NPC shares, about 51.38 million shares are not directly owned by Loo and indirectly via his Jubilent Ventures.
Acquiring these shares at RM2.82 each will cost a minimum of RM144.9mil.
NPC is a low-float company. Based on Bloomberg data, only less than 13% of the outstanding shares are free-float.
Jubilant Ventures, as the single-largest shareholder, has an equity interest of 31.62% in NPC. This is followed by Loo with a stake of 24.34%.
Another substantial shareholder of NPC is Tan Sri Koh Kin Lip, who has a direct stake of 16.95% and an indirect stake of 2.41% via Rickoh Corp Sdn Bhd.
Koh is the independent and non-executive director of another Bursa Malaysia-listed company, T7 Global Bhd. However, he is not part of the NPC board.
According to its latest available annual report, Sabah-based NPC operates 10,776ha of plantation land, of which 6,767ha are located in the Sandakan region and 4,009ha on the Banggi Island.
NPC also has a palm oil processing mill in Sabah, which has a production capacity of 75 tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) per hour. In Kalimantan Timur, Indonesia, the group has a total plantation land area of 45,064ha. For the financial year 2023, the group’s total planted hectarage in Indonesia was 20,579ha.
It also operates one palm oil processing mill which has a production capacity of 60 tonnes of FFB per hour in Indonesia.
Apart from the plantation business, NPC is also involved in the hotel industry via its The Palace Hotel. It is located in Kota Kinabalu.
In the first nine months ended Sept 30, 2024, NPC’s net profit more than doubled to RM35.79mil, against a revenue that rose by 3.9% year-on-year to RM350.59mil.
The improved bottom line was achieved mainly due to the higher average selling prices of crude palm oil and palm kernel as well as lower fertiliser prices.
