Memories My first replanting

We had an area of very old rubber.The area had been abandoned from tapping very much earlier.The stand was old rubber seedlings,many very huge trees and I estimated the stand per acre was slightly more than a hundred.

The inter-rows was in horrible state,full of wild grown wild rubber seedlings.The sized of these seedlings were beyond imaginations.Apparently the inter-rows were neglected long ago.For tapping they just cleared the tappers' path,that was all.

In 1971 we decided to replant it,So we called out for a reliable contractor.At that time rubber wood was in no demand.Many came the Boss himself selected one contractor and began cutting the trees in November 1971.

Unfortunately this contractors absconded after cutting down all the trees
for he feared he could not finish the contract on time.Lucky we did not over paid him.

We have difficulties finding a replacement so we decided to finish the job ourselves.So I took over.Initially I recruited another contractor to supply some chainsaw men to continue cutting the fallen trees into movable lengths.

Following I got some extra temporary workers recruited from nearby kampongs.We were fortunate because the estate was next to a Malay kampong.Most Javanese workers with one of them as headman.

So with them we roughly stacked the fallen wood onto the trunk.When the wood were drier we set fire to them just before we go home.Every day it was l like that.And I was with them from morning till evening.

As routine we re-stacked all the unburnt wood onto the huge trunk etc.and reburnt them,until all completely burnt off.By burning all the rubber wood like this we unnoticiably also destroyed all the wild rubber seedlings.

It took us nearly three months to completely cleared the field of 130 acs.,three months of hot sun and I was as dark as an all the Javanese workers.There was no doubt that the costs were high but we cannot help as we could not get another contractor to finish the job.

After this we plotted out the roads and also did lining for the replanting to Oil Palms.The roads were laid with laterites from our own hill.

We began planting in September 1972,with on set of the rainy seasons.Before we started planting we had a visitor,my Boss's friend,he came to see how we were planting.

I waited for him at the office and he came in his car.Thereafter I droved him to the replanting field.This guy on reaching the field rushed at the first palm planted by a worker earlier and began kicking it with his leather shoes.""See,no firm planting".

I was surprised at his action and said if I did not wait for him this would not have happened.I told him off because he was only a visitor.Anyway I told him if he wants my job he can have it.He kept quiet.

Later I learned that he was a Petrol Pump Owner (Mobil) in old Kelang Road.He was a pineapple planter.He later after this became Manager of Bidor Bahru Estate.To day he is a giant in the planting world.Like to know who? He is the shorty Lee Shin Cheng.Believe it or not.

We did an excellent job with our replanting and we completed it on time.The Boss was very pleased with it.

As for Mr.Lee I was told is still kicking lallang in his group of Estates.

Source here

Council To Spearhead ECER Development, Says PM

KUALA TERENGGANU, June 14 (Bernama) -- The East Coast Economic Region (ECER) Development Council will spearhead implementation of the ECER master plan and play the main role in determining the direction, policy and strategy for its development.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, in stating this Saturday, said the council, set up under an Act of Parliament, would also generate and promote economic and social developments as well as private sector investments in the region.

"The setting up of the council, as an authority, is important to ensure that the ECER master plan is implemented in an efficient and orderly manner," he said at the launch of the council here Saturday.

"With this, the policies, planning and implementation by all parties can be streamlined in an organised and comprehensive way for the welfare of the local people," he added.

Abdullah said besides promoting economic activities in the ECER, the council would also study the impact of development programmes to ensure that socio-economic development was being carried out in tandem.

He also said that to ensure the success of the ECER, he has appointed members from the highest level for the council with himself taking on the responsibility of chairman.

Other members included Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Said, Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob, Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman and Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, he said.

Abdullah said to strengthen the council, he has appointed Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tan Sri Amirsham A. Aziz as representatives of the federal government.

Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Sidek Hassan has also ben appointed to represent the civil service, he said.

The Prime Minister named Petronas' president and chief executive officer Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican and IOI Corp's executive chairman Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng as representatives of the private sector.

Abdullah said at the management and operations level, the council will be led by Datuk Jebasingam Issace John as the chief executive officer.

"He was involved in drawing up the ECER master plan and is supported by a team which is capable of carrying out the council's functions effectively," he said.

Abdullah said the council has a heavy responsibility to ensure that the ECER objectives are achieved."

As the chairman, I will ensure that the council acts efficiently, effectively and impartially," he said.

On progress of the ECER so far, Abdullah said he was satisfied with the ECER secretariat for its efforts in developing several projects and programmes.Among them is the setting of Centres of Excellence at five universities in the region, namely Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Universiti Darul Iman, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Universiti Teknologi Mara and Universiti Malaysia Kelantan.

According to him, such centres are in line with the ECER objectives to encourage research and development, which can lead to related commercial industries coming up in the region.On the agriculture sector, Abdullah said several initiatives had started to be implemented.

Among them is the development of three agro valleys in Bachok-Setiu-Kuala Berang, Pekan-Rompin-Mersing and Kuantan-Maran areas, a herbal and biotech park in Gua Musang, Kelantan, and a fruit park in Lanchang, Pahang.

He said for the petrochemical sector, development of the Kertih Plastic Park had started and results were shown with an initial investment of RM50 million for factory and infrastructure.Abdullah said the government would continue to support the ECER by providing the optimum infrastructure.

He said the mid-term review of the Ninth Malaysia Plan would look into the allocations for the infrastructure development of the ECER as well as the other economic regions.-- BERNAMA

Source here

IOI Properties confident Sentosa Cove condos can sell

UALA LUMPUR: IOI Properties Bhd is confident that its biggest high-end development in Singapore’s Sentosa Cove will be a success despite soaring crude oil prices and a softening property market in the republic.

Executive director Datuk Lee Yeow Chor said the group had foreseen the market softening and construction costs rising when subsidiary IOI Properties (S) Pte Ltd and joint-venture partner Ho Bee Investment Ltd successfully tendered for a 5.3-acre 99-year leasehold land called Pinnacle Collection in Sentosa Cove in January for S$1.09bil (RM2.5bil).

The price is about 13.9% more than the reserved price of S$963mil.

“When we tendered for the land last December, the residential market in Singapore was consolidating. It’s good to have a correction as the market went up too fast, by 31%, last year,” Lee told StarBiz after shareholders approved the deal at an EGM yesterday.

Lee said what was more important was the land’s potential as it was the last piece of condominium land parcel in Sentosa Cove.

He said Sentosa Cove had three major attributes – a famous name; a seafront property that would attract many international high-net worth investors; and its location near the integrated resort-cum-casino development where the Genting group would be investing S$5.3bil.

“We believe the integrated resort will give Sentosa Cove a big boost when it (resort) is completed end-2009. We have timed our development (Pinnacle Collection) with the completion of the resort so that people can see the full potential of the place,” he added.

Lee said the group planned to build condominiums, priced about S$3,000 per sq ft.

Pinnacle Collection, to be launched next year, will have seven 18-storey blocks and a 20-storey luxurious condominium. It will have 280 apartments and penthouses of various layout and sizes.

“The average size (per unit) would be 2,500-3,200 sq ft. There will be private lift lobbies. It will cater to the international market,” Lee said, adding that besides Singapore, it would target investors from Indonesia, China, the Middle East and India.

It will have a total development cost of S$1.6bil and estimated gross development profits (before interest costs) of S$500mil.

To be completed in early 2012, it will be funded from sales proceeds, borrowings by joint-venture company Pinnacle (Sentosa) Ltd (IOI Properties and Ho Bee will have 65:35 ownership) and advances from shareholders. Sales will commence in mid-2009.

The Pinnacle Collection is one of two condominium parcels that flank the entrance of the marina leading to Sentosa Cove.

It is adjacent to the 3.6-acre leasehold Seaview Collection, which was successfully tendered by another IOI Properties subsidiary with Ho Bee in March 2007. Seaview Collection, a luxury condominium project comprising two eight-storey apartment blocks with 151 units, will be launched in the third quarter.

Source here

10-06-2008: IOI to delay project launches in Singapore

PUTRAJAYA: IOI Properties Bhd will wait for the next cycle to launch its property development projects in Singapore in view of the less-than-robust economic market, said its executive chairman Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng.

However, he said construction work on the two projects — Seaview Collection and the Pinnacle Collection in Sentosa Cove — would go ahead as planned.

Speaking to reporters after the company’s EGM here yesterday, Lee said the time was not right to launch both the projects and “the next cycle will be higher than the previous cycle”.

IOI Property, through a joint venture with Ho Bee Investment Ltd, is developing the Pinnacle Collection, which comprises seven 18-storey blocks and one 20-storey block of luxurious condominiums, while Seaview is a luxury condominium development comprising two eight-storey apartment blocks.

The group has a total of 4,500 acres (1,821 hectares) of landbank in the Klang Valley and Johor. It also plans to develop 543 acres of land in Putrajaya into high-end bungalow lots and condominiums which would be launched next year.

On the issue of windfall tax which will affect IOI Corporation Bhd’s plantations division, Lee said the group was disagreeable to the tax as the industry was already paying cess to the Malaysian Palm Oil Board, in addition to levies imposed in Sabah and Sarawak, apart from their subsidising of cooking oil.

“There is no country in the world where planters are subsidising manufacturers,” he added.

Last week, the government had announced the removal of the cooking oil stabilising scheme as part of the subsidy restructuring scheme and replaced with windfall tax.

According to Lee, IOI was also finalising a US$100 million (RM325 million) investment as part of its expansion plan in Rotterdam, Holland. IOI already owns a palm oil refinery of 85,000-tonne capacity and would build a 300,000-tonne capacity plant to process margarine.

On its previous proposal to buy six plantation companies in Sarawak which would have cost RM439.9 million, IOI’s group executive director Datuk Lee Yeow Chor said the deal had fallen through due to technical issues.

“It is not about the price but title. Some pre-conditions cannot be satisfied,” he said, adding that it would be difficult to say if IOI would pursue the purchase of these plantations later. The six companies have a combined plantation landholding of 44,350ha, of which 30.4% or 13,500ha were planted with oil palm.

Source here

Projects in Singapore set to further boost group image

VENTURING into Singapore's luxury residential property market is set to enhance IOI Properties Bhd's brand and reputation as a quality home developer in Malaysia and Singapore.

IOI Properties executive director Datuk Lee Yeow Chor is excited about the company's two projects in Sentosa Cove that would pave the way for more ventures across the causeway over the next two years.

The two projects will be undertaken with its Singapore joint-venture partner, Ho Bee Investment Ltd, which is involved in four other projects in Sentosa Cove.

The Seaview Collection condo in Sentosa Cove will comprise two eight-storey blocks of 125 residences.

“We are confident that the projects will do well as there are no more land for condominium projects in Sentosa Cove.

“The 5.3-acre land parcel that we successfully tendered for in January is the final piece of condominium land to be launched by Sentosa Cove Pte Ltd,” Lee said.

He added that the acquisition of the land has just been concluded and it would be the site for its second project, The Pinnacle Collection, which is one of the two condominium parcels that flank the entrance of the marina leading into Sentosa Cove.

Lee said the scheduled completion of the Genting group's integrated resort development on Sentosa Island next year would spawn a greater demand for more quality homes in Sentosa Cove.

“Sentosa Cove, a world-renowned exclusive residential development, is now about 50% completed while another 20% of the projects are now ongoing. It has attracted many high net worth buyers from around the world,” Lee said.

The Pinnacle Collection, comprising a 20-storey block of 250 luxury condominium units, will be launched by the end of next year.

The Pinnacle residences will have an average built-up of 2,000 sq ft. The building designs for the project are still being finalised.

Meanwhile, the company's first project in Sentosa Cove, the Seaview Collection, will comprise two eight-storey blocks of 125 residences on 3.6 acres.

Construction will start in the third quarter of this year and the project will be launched for sale by the end of the year.

Analysts look at IOI Properties' venture into Singapore positively.

A recent CIMB Research note said that as the company's profits were the largest compared with other Malaysian developers, IOI Properties had no choice but to seek new avenues for growth to see a significant impact on its bottom line.

“We view positively its choice of joint-venture partner as Ho Bee has carved a niche in high-end residential development projects on Sentosa Island.

“IOI Properties is one of the few Malaysian developers with the balance sheet to take on Singapore-scale projects,” it said.

CIMB Research said although the Singapore property market was highly competitive, “values are significantly higher than in Malaysia”.

“Assuming an average selling price of S$3,000 per sq ft, the sales value of the Seaview Collection condominiums alone is a mind-boggling RM2.4bil, which is equivalent to a medium-sized township that would easily take 10 to 15 years to complete.

“The break-even cost for the condominiums is estimated at S$1,900 per sq ft,” it said.

The margins for the Pinnacle project should also be good as the break-even cost is around S$2,400 per sq ft while the targeted selling price should be closer to S$3,500 per sq ft, the research house added.

Source here

Oil palm companies to pay windfall tax from July 1

PETALING JAYA: The Government will impose windfall tax on oil palm companies starting July 1.

An analyst said under the Windfall Profit Levy Act 1998, a windfall levy would be imposed on crude palm oil (CPO) and crude palm kernel oil (CPKO) when the prices are in excess of the threshold of RM2,000 per tonne.

Under the proposed windfall tax framework, palm oil producers in peninsular Malaysia would be charged tax amounting to 15%, and 7.5% for Sabah and Sarawak.

At the same time, the Government is also abolishing the existing cooking oil cess from July 1.

However, the price of cooking oil will remain the same as it will now be subsidised by the windfall taxes.

The Government said plantation companies in Sabah and Sarawak were charged a lower windfall tax as they were already paying sales tax to their respective state governments.

OSK Research plantation analyst Alvin Tai said: ”The lower windfall tax is expected to be a positive move for plantation companies in Sabah and Sarawak. However, we expect the tax will have a slightly negative impact for companies in peninsular Malaysia.”

“The net impact of this move will be neutral but we remain overweight on this sector,” Tai said, adding that most plantation companies had exposure in the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak.

A local plantation analyst said the imposition of the windfall tax would have minimal impact on the plantation industry.

“I don’t see it derailing profits, moving forward. Net impact on earnings would be minimal, given that the cess has been abolished at the same time.

“It (impact) also depends on the company. Big firms like IOI Corp Bhd which have diversified operations would be least affected while pure planters like IJM Plantations Bhd and Asiatic Development Bhd would be more affected,” the analyst said.

Under the new tax plan, companies in Sabah and Sarawak are expected to pay RM112.50 per tonne of CPO whereas their peninsular Malaysia counterparts would pay about RM225 for a tonne of CPO.

At the same time, all plantation companies would “save” about RM200 per tonne (at the current CPO price of about RM3,500 a tonne) with the abolishment of the cess tax.

This means companies in peninsular Malaysia would still have to fork out RM25 per tonne of CPO while those in Sabah and Sarawak would enjoy savings of RM87.50 per tonne.

Most companies contacted by StarBiz declined comment on the taxes, saying they needed time to study the tax framework before issuing any statements.

Source here

Lee’s son appointed IOI Corp ED

KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Yeow Seng, son of Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng, was appointed executive director of IOI Corporation Bhd yesterday.

Yeow Seng joined IOI group in 2002 as special assistant to Lee. Prior to that, he was with the London and Singapore offices of a leading international financial services group. He is involved in corporate affairs and general management within the IOI group.

He has a direct interest of 1.14 million shares and indirect 2.4 million shares in IOI Corp, and indirect 233.54 million shares in IOI Properties Bhd.

Source here

Yeo’s departure seen having minor impact

PETALING JAYA: IOI Corp Bhd expects minimal disruption to its group operations following the resignation of group executive director Datuk Yeo How, which will take effect end-July.

A company spokesman said Yeo, had been instrumental in ensuring there was a strong management team and good corporate culture.

“Besides, group executive director Datuk Lee Yeow Chor, who oversees the group's operations, is also familiar with the areas covered by Yeo.

“Hence there should be minimal impact on group operations as his impending resignation had already been discussed awhile back,” she told StarBiz yesterday.

On Tuesday, IOI Corp announced Yeo would be leaving the group to pursue a new career. It was learnt Yeo could have accepted a job offer by a Singapore-based plantation group.

Credit Suisse Research said in a note to clients yesterday IOI Corp's valuation premium was affected on concerns over Yeo's departure.

It said the “delicate balance” between executive chairman Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng's entrepreneurship and Yeo's good capital management and corporate governance would be affected. It downgraded IOI Corp to underperform from outperform and cut its target price to RM7 from RM10.

However, the IOI Corp spokesman described Credit Suisse Research's comment and inference as unfair to the company and Yeo for his efforts in putting systems in place over the years.

Other analysts said although there might be a momentary spike in the IOI's share price, it was unlikely to be permanently impacted by this news.

RHB Research Institute said any knee-jerk reaction in IOI Corp's share price should be temporary, given that there was no change in substantial share ownership and Tan Sri Lee was still the main driver of the business.

“Yeo's personal shareholding in IOI Corp is only 0.01% and less than 0.01% for IOI Properties Bhd, so we don’t expect any potential major selldown of Esos (employee share option scheme) shares,” it said in a report.

RHB Research said Tan Sri Lee would already have someone in mind to replace Yeo and a likely candidate would be Yeow Chor, his eldest sonwho has been on the board since 1996. It maintains its outperform call with a fair value of RM9.35 per share.

IOI Corp closed 10 sen down at RM7.10. It was the most active counter with 13.52 million shares done.

Source here