Monday, January 16, 2012

UPDATE:

KUALA LUMPUR (BERNAMA) -- Khazanah Nasional Bhd has announced that it will divest its Link42.74 per cent stake inProton Holdings Bhd toDRB-HICOM Bhd via a conditional sale with a price consideration of RM5.50 per share or RM1.291 billion.

n a statement today, Khazanah said the decision was made following due deliberation and detailed evaluation of various proposals to ensure that due process was observed, proper financial value was received and that the new shareholder would be able to bring the national auto maker to the next level of strategic growth in line with the aspirations of the industrial development of the national automotive sector.

The divestment is still subject to, among others, the approval of the shareholders of DRB-Hicom.

"Upon completion of the sale and purchase agreement, DRB-Hicom will be obliged to undertake a mandatory general offer on the remaining Proton shares," the government's investment arm said.

Khazanah Managing DirectorAzman Mokhtar said pursuant to a thorough assessment of its proposal, which offered a defined and executable business strategy, DRB-Hicom was identified as the appropriate party to acquire the interest in Proton.

Earllier posting:

Khazanah Nasional Bhd will announce today that DRB-HICOM Bhd has won the bid for the 42.7 per cent stake in national car maker Proton Holdings Bhd.

For weeks now, we're been hearing talk and reading about parties interested in the deal. Among them are DRB-Hicom Bhd are and Naza.

DRB-Hicom seemed to be the front-runner.

Last week, it was reported that Khazanah, the government's investment arm would be announcing Khazanah Nasional Bhd today that DRB-Hicom has won the bid, with the sale price said to be at RM6 a share for a total of RM1.4bil.

The deal would require that the buyer make an offer to buy out the rest of Proton’s shareholders.

Bernama reports that trading Proton Holdings Berhad and DRB-Hicom Bhd were suspended from 9am to 5pm today pending an announcement.

The companies did not give details in a filing to Bursa Malaysia today.

DRB-Hicom asked for a suspension in trading, saying the company will be proposing a corporate exercise involving a very substantial transaction.

Proton shares closed at RM5.18 a share Friday and DRB-Hicom at RM2.17.

The Star reports that the take-over price is likely to be between RM5.50 and RM6 per share.

It quoted a banking source that Malayan Banking Bhd would be providing most of the funding for the deal.

It also quoted an industry source familiar with the deal that "the buyer had a comprehensive bid to consolidate the domestic automobile industry and to steer the national carmaker into profitability via strategic foreign partners and joint ventures."

You know, nobody seems to be able to say what really went wrong with Proton. So many scenarios. So many scapegoats.

Nobody wants to take the blame.

Has Khazanah been doing the right thing(s) all this while?

What a waste of investment in a great iconic national project....I covered the announcement by the Deputy Prime Minister Musa Hitam in 1982 that "a national car project is on the drawing board."

Well...what's done is done. That's last century. Here's hoping for better and bigger things for Proton and the country....
at

4 comments:

  1. bruno2:28 PM

    Nuraina,I am pretty sure that Dr Mahathir will be a very happy man now that his pet project will now be in the safe hands of his buddy Syed Mokhtar Al Bukhary.

    If my memory does not failed me,I think that this same guy Bukhary was the partner with Muhyiddin when he was the MB in johore,involved in the shakedown of Stanford Holdings.

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  2. bruno2:13 AM

    Nuraina,I still remember when the idea of a national car was mooted.It was taken with a bit of sceptisism or rather as a joke that the engines will be dropping down as some American cars do,when it comes rolling out of the assembly lines.

    Even some kanchils are so tiny that a carpark was built and name specially after it at the foot of Penang Hill.What amazed me was in Europe in hotel car rental brouchers you can see the Proton too.

    But although the quality and sales were not as bad as critics predicted,one has to wonder as why it is unprofitable.Indirectly the Proton car is like a government monopoly.Monopoly in a sense that it was spared the excesses of heavy import duties as other foreign mades.And also made the official car of the GOM and its agencies.

    Proton had so many advantages over other foreign mades.And with the GOM's strong backing and it is still unprofitable we can never ever get an honest answer.Not even after the cows have come home.

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  3. Anonymous4:58 PM

    and after it is milked at the expense of tazpayers thro higher prices for imported cars khazanah or sime or another glc will take it back at a profit for drb....so what else is new in malaysia?

    if khazanah is really professional they should make a statement as to why they are selling to drb and why they are convinced that drb will be able to manage the co better than they or anyone else can.

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  4. Anonymous11:11 AM

    Anon 4:58.

    Khazanah owes you no explanation. You don't know anything but just shooting off your mouth like a silly fool.

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