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KUCHING: Rimbunan Sawit Bhd  will undertake a series of short-to-medium term measures to beef up crop production and yield of its loss-making oil palm plantations.

Managing director Tiong Chiong Ie said the group plans to implement a recovery and rehabilitation programme to improve the conditions of these plantations.

Among the measures is the deployment of additional resources, such as machinery, equipment and human resources, to maximise fresh fruit bunch (FFB) crop recovery in the most productive blocks of the oil palm estates.

The group will upgrade, repair and carry out maintenance works on the main and field roads to facilitate accessibility to and from the plantations.

To attract more workers to its plantations, Tiong said Rimbuan Sawit would establish attractive field work piece rates plus incentives, as well as refurbish or renovate the existing workers’ quarters to upgrade their amenities and facilities or construct new workers’ accommodation.

Rimbunan Sawit group owns 16 oil palm estates in Kuching, Sibu and Miri with a total planted area of 42,478ha, representing about 60.76% of the group’s total landbank of 69,909ha.

As at Dec 31, 2022, about 49% or 20,849 ha of the oil palms were in prime mature age cluster (eight to 19 years), 17,794ha or nearly 42% were old mature (over 20 years), 1,259 ha (young mature) and 2,576 ha (immature).

The group also owns and operates three palm oil mills.

Via wholly-owned subsidiaries R.H. Plantations Sdn Bhd and Jayamax Plantation Sdn Bhd, Rimbunan Sawit has entered into sales and purchase agreements with Mahawangsa Sungai Bok Plantation Sdn Bhd (formerly known as Hua Seng Plantation Sdn Bhd) (MSBPSB) to dispose of two loss-making oil palm plantations known as the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate in Miri Division, northern Sarawak for a total of RM165mil in cash.

The Selangor Estate covers 4,857ha and Jayamax Estate 5,077.66ha, which also include buildings.

In a circular to shareholders on the proposed disposal of the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate, Tiong said besides these two estates, the group has other loss-making oil palm plantations.

However, he did not disclose the number and size.

Rimbunan Sawit shareholders will vote on the proposed disposals at an EGM on April 8.

According to Tiong, the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate had been loss-making for three consecutive financial years up to 2022.

This was mainly because of shortage of oil palm harvesters as a result of travel restrictions and border closures imposed by the federal government to curb the spread of Covid-19 pandemic, as well as adverse weather conditions arising from the El Nino phenomenon in 2020.

This, he pointed out, had resulted in low FFB production and yield of the estates.

As both the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate are located at the boundary of the group’s oil palm estates in Miri, Tiong said their disposals are expected to cause minimal disruption to the operations of the group’s other oil palm estates within the region.

“Furthermore, given that the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate are adjacent to each other, disposing them together would enable MSBPSB to achieve economies of scale by operating the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate together,” he added.

The sales of the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate would reduce Rimbunan Sawit group ‘s total planted landbank by 17.99% or 7,643 ha.

Rimbunan Sawit group had suffered net losses for five consecutive years to 2022 but the losses had been reduced substantially from RM148.7mil in 2018 (revenue: RM338.7mil) to RM62.8mil (RM284.7mil) in 2019, to RM56.1mil (RM385.5mil) in 2020,to RM6.98mil (RM541.5mil) in 2021 and RM5.8mil (675.9mil) in 2022.

In 2023, the group made a turnaround and returned to the black with profit of RM24.5mil on revenue of RM507.8mil.

Tiong said the proposed disposals of the Selangor Estate and Jayamax Estate represents an opportunity for the group to unlock the value at a premium to their respective market value.

The group is expected to record a pro forma gain on disposal of about RM77.94mil.

From the proceeds of the sales, he said the money would be utilised for partial repayment of the group’s interest-bearing borrowings of about RM86.11mil.

This is expected to result in an interest cost savings of about RM3.99mil per annum and lower the group’s gearing level to 0.61 times from 0.99 times.

“In addition, part of the proceeds of the proposed disposals will be channelled towards the group’s business operations, as it will be utilised to fund new planting and replanting of oil palms. In that regard, the group will be able to conserve its internally generated funds to strengthen its financial position.”Going forward, Tiong said the group will seek opportunities to replenish and expand its plantation assets.

“The group takes cognisance that the foreign worker availability in Malaysia is gradually improving and expects healthy soil moisture conditions and lower-flooding disruptions to support output of its palm oil products, which bodes well for the performance of its oil palm estates in the longer term.

“Furthermore, with expectations of firmer palm oil prices and greater demand of palm oil products from the market, coupled with the group’s continuous efforts to optimise its operations and costs to drive greater efficiency and productivity, the group is cautiously optimistic on the outlook of the oil palm plantation segment as well as the financial performance of the group,” he added.

 

https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2024/04/01/rimbunan-sawit-to-beef-up-crop-production-and-yield

 

Sumber : The Star

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KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is capable of contributing more to biomass and biofuel development, says Deputy Plantations and Commodities Minister Datuk Chan Foong Hin.

“However, due to low awareness, we are among the lowest contributors of used cooking oil (UCO) in the country,” he said during the Fryer 2 Flyer campaign here Saturday (Aug 3).

Chan said to increase participation among users in recycling used cooking oil for the purpose of sustainability, recycling and lowering greenhouse gas emissions, PETRONAS Dagangan Berhad (PDB) had in July last year launched its “Fryer 2 Flyer” campaign where selected gas stations collect UCO.

This campaign is a joint effort with the Plantations and Commodities Ministry.

Those who bring their UCO are paid RM2.50 per kg in Sabah, said Chan, adding that this price is lower than those in the peninsula because Sabah still enjoys subsidies on oil and fuel.

He said similar to the City Hall’s recent plastic bag reduction campaign beginning Aug 1, it is also hoped that a by-law for used cooking oil can be introduced.

“The City Hall is considering enacting a by-law for plastic bag usage, right? So I think they can also consider a by-law for used cooking oil disposal and recycling so that we can work better towards a low carbon city status for Kota Kinabalu,” he said.

For PETRONAS, the collected UCO can be turned into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) while City Hall, as the partner for this campaign, will act as the movers for sustainable living in the city, said Chan.

The value of SAF is three times higher than normal aviation fuel price.

He said PETRONAS is targeting to collect some 500,000kg of UCO with the participation of over 100,000 users nationwide by year-end.

In Sabah, there are only two other Petronas fuel stations that offer UCO collection - Jalan Utara Tawau and Batu 8 Labuk, Sandakan, and these collection counters only open on Sundays.

 

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/08/03/sabah-has-potential-to-boost-biomass-and-biofuel-development-says-deputy-commodities-minister

 

Sumber : The Star

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KOTA KINABALU: Sabah's palm oil industry needs to urgently expand its downstream sector to bridge the gap with counterparts in Peninsular Malaysia, says Datuk Chan Foong Hin.

The Deputy Plantation and Commodities Minister said that the ministry was committed to actively supporting Sabah's efforts to expand its downstream palm oil industry that will not only balance development but also increase revenue through value-added palm oil products.

In 2023, he said Sabah produced 4.5 million tonnes of crude palm oil, with 21.8% exported in crude form.

"This contrasts sharply with the peninsula's export rate of only 5.5% of crude palm oil, highlighting the substantial potential for Sabah's downstream palm oil industry growth," he said in a statement Tuesday (April 30).

Chan said a higher rate of crude palm oil exports results in less raw material available for downstream value-add or refining.

He said it was important for Sabah to diversify beyond upstream production and put in place a strong industry supply chain that maximises potential from upstream to downstream sectors to safeguard the sustainability of the palm oil industry.

Chan said this after a recent four-day tour of Sabah's east coast where he visited the Palm Oil Industrial Clusters (POIC) in Lahad Datu and Sandakan as well as met with two companies specialising in palm oil downstream activities.

The two companies were Mewah Datu Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Singapore's Mewah Group, and Gamalux Oils Sdn Bhd from Pakistan, both situated in POIC Lahad Datu.

He said the two POICs along Sabah's east coast played a pivotal role to drive the industrialisation efforts and become core centres for high-value palm oil and palm biomass downstream industries.

"Sabah's POICs offer comprehensive port and logistics infrastructure that can accelerate economic growth and industrial development.

"This makes it a highly appealing and promising investment destination.

"I am also excited to learn about Gamalux's plans for oleochemicals expansion in 2025, marking a significant milestone as the first unit in Malaysian Borneo. This event not only demonstrates Gamalux's ambitions but also its strong confidence in Lahad Datu as a growing hub for sustainable industrial development within the palm oil sector," said Chan.

 

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/04/30/sabah-must-push-for-expansion-of-downstream-palm-oil-sector-says-deputy-minister

 

Sumber : The Star

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KOTA KINABALU: Sabah has reaffirmed its commitment toward the production of sustainable palm oil in the state by next year under a framework set by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).

It said it was on track to implement the Jurisdictional Approach Piloting Framework set by RSPO, currently the most recognised international certification for the production of sustainable palm oil.

Sabah’s efforts since 2015 were recognised at the RSPO’s annual conference in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The state achieved the first step of the four-step process last year.

This initiative is known as the Jurisdictional Approach to Sustainable Palm Oil (Jaspo).

A workshop was convened earlier this month to discuss the implementation of the second step.

Sabah Natural Resources Office secretary Sernam Singh said the next two years would entail the complete development and adoption of the framework.

“It will require a careful and unique approach to suit necessary solutions for complex issues in the state, ranging from labour issues to protection of high conservation value areas.

“Setting up mechanisms to achieve this will prepare Sabah for full compliance of national and international sustainability standards, including the European Union Deforestation Regulation,” he said

Sabah’s Chief Conservator of Forests Datuk Frederick Kugan said a landscape-based sustainability approach for the palm oil industry had been a groundbreaking journey as Sabah had shown its commitment and the ability to adapt to new challenges.

“The knowledge we have gained in the process is invaluable and will benefit not just Sabah’s palm oil industry but also other sectors and regions embarking on similar pursuits,” he added.

Sabah produces 24% of Malaysia’s production of crude palm oil and around 6% of global production.

 

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/05/14/sabah-on-track-for-sustainable-palm-oil-production

 

Sumber : The Star

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KUALA LUMPUR (May 23): Sarawak Oil Palms Bhd’s (KL:SOP) net profit surged 80% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the first quarter, thanks to higher sales and lower production costs.

Net profit for the three months ended March 31, 2024 (1QFY2024) was RM79.46 million compared to RM44.17 million over the same period a year earlier, Sarawak Oil Palms said in an exchange filing.

Revenue rose 9.8% y-o-y to RM1.33 billion from RM1.21 billion on higher volume, it said.

“The group is taking effective steps to improve its production through an aggressive recovery programme, including cost control and replanting programme,” Sarawak Oil Palms said. The industry will continue to face challenges in view of global economic conditions and softening of commodity prices, it flagged.

Average realised prices per ton for palm oil products stood at RM3,913 versus RM3,973 in 1QFY2023, while that of palm kernel products was 3.9% lower at RM2,267 versus RM2,359 in 1QFY2023.

Sarawak Oil Palms said the group’s performance will continue to be driven by the cyclical fresh fruit bunches production, global world edible oil price movement, as well as supply chain effects on fertilisers, chemicals and fuel prices which will affect production costs.

Shares in Sarawak Oil Palms ended four sen or 1.33% lower at RM2.96, valuing the planter at RM2.64 billion.

 

https://theedgemalaysia.com/node/712719

 

Sumber : The Edge Malaysia