KUALA LUMPUR, 2 November – Following the disposal of its 61.2 percent stake in Opus International Consultants Limited (“OIC”, listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange) to WSP Global Inc. (“WSP”), UEM Edgenta Berhad (“UEM Edgenta” or “Company”) will focus on streamlining its operations, drive organic growth and re-allocate its resources into its three core sectors namely Healthcare, Infrastructure and Real Estate which are expected to continue to see positive returns.
UEM Edgenta received shareholders’ approval for the disposal of OIC at an Extraordinary General Meeting (“EGM”) held today. The all-cash transaction earned UEM Edgenta gross proceeds of RM528.6 million for the 61.2 percent stake or NZD1.92 (about RM5.84) per OIC share and an estimated gain of about RM292.3 million on a consolidated basis.
The Company will drive organic growth in the three core sectors by pursuing various key infrastructure projects; harnessing revenue synergies and cross selling opportunities which includes expanding service offerings in the commercial healthcare sector; growing its portfolio such as township and building services in Malaysia’s Southern region; and focusing on its core markets of Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Taiwan and Middle East.
At present, UEM Edgenta is the region’s leading Total Asset Solutions provider in the three core sectors. It is the leading support services provider for the private and public healthcare segments, an industry leader in Malaysia and Taiwan, and holds the number two position for the same segment in Singapore.
The Company is also the leading infrastructure service provider in the road sector providing consultancy, advisory and contracting services for over 2,500 kilometres of highways and major roads in Malaysia and Indonesia. In addition, it provides services in the Real Estate sector, specifically Township Management Services within Malaysia.
“We aim to further improve our performance delivery in these sectors by driving operational and organisational excellence; implement Enterprise Resource Planning to enhance our back-end support system and integration of processes; as well as continue to adopt and implement various technology enablers,” said Dato’ Azmir Merican, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of UEM Edgenta.
Post disposal of OIC, Dato’ Azmir said that UEM Edgenta will retain and drive the growth of its Malaysian asset consultancy services via its wholly-owned and home-grown subsidiary, Opus International (M) Berhad (“OIM”), a company which has over 20 years of experience and expertise in project management as well as design consultancy operating in both Malaysia and Indonesia.
OIM is the same entity that is currently supporting UEM Group Berhad (parent company of UEM Edgenta) in delivering the Pan Borneo Highway Project in Sabah and undertook the Light Rail Transit 2 (“LRT2”) project back in 2016 which was completed within a demanding schedule.
The disposal of OIC is expected to be completed by end of 2017, pending the approval of Overseas Investment Office of New Zealand. Majority of the proceeds from the disposal will be used to repay debts, which will reduce the Company’s Gross Gearing from 0.79x to 0.38x and corresponding Net Gearing from 0.25x to net cash position (proforma as per 30 June 2017).
