News Highlight

Edaran Modenas Sdn Bhd (EMOS), a subsidiary of Motosikal dan Enjin Nasional Sdn Bhd (MODENAS), and a member of the DRB-HICOM Group, today announced the appointment of EMOS as the new exclusive distributor of KYMCO brands in Malaysia.

The award not only marks the re-emergence of the KYMCO brand in the country, but also a strategic partnership that would pave the way for a mutually beneficial collaboration and offers various synergies for both parties. With this new collaboration, EMOS will be responsible for the distribution, sales and marketing of KYMCO locally. As a start, EMOS will be bringing in two KYMCO models – 250i Downtown and 400i Exciting scooters to Malaysia.

KYMCO is the leading brand for scooters in South East Asia and is targeting Malaysia to expand their business in the region. EMOS has appointed 30 exclusive dealers throughout Malaysia, including in Sabah and Sarawak, to promote the scooters. The KYMCO scooters are made available only at these exclusive outlets.

In appreciation of the outstanding achievements recorded by the four national Paralympians at the recent Rio Paralympic Games, DRB-HICOM Berhad today presented Umrah packages to the nation“s heroes who created history by winning three gold medals and a bronze – ending the country“s long-awaited dream of securing gold at the Paralympics Games.

A total of four Umrah packages were presented to the medalists. Gold medalists Mohamad Ridzuan Mohd Fuzi, Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli and Abdul Latif Romly received Umrah packages inclusive of two family members each, while bronze medallist Siti Noor Radiah Ismail received an Umrah package inclusive of a family member. The Umrah trip is expected to take place in January 2017.

The event was graced by the Deputy Director General of National Sports Council, Dato“ Haji Ab Jalil Abdullah. Also in attendance was Group Managing Director of DRB-HICOM Berhad, Dato“ Sri Syed Faisal Albar.

DRB-HICOM Berhad (“DRB-HICOM” or “the Company”) today announced that all the Ordinary Resolutions tabled at the 26th AGM and EGM of DRB-HICOM held this morning have been approved by the shareholders and proxies present at the said meetings.

YBhg Datuk Haji Abdul Rahman bin Mohd Ramli who served as an Independent Director of DRB-HICOM since 28 October 2005 did not seek for re-appointment at the 26th AGM due to his other commitments.

In addition, YBhg Dato“ Abdul Rahman bin Ahmad appointed as an Independent Director of DRB-HICOM on 16 May 2016 did not seek for re-election following his appointment as the President and Group Chief Executive Officer of Permodalan Nasional Berhad (“PNB”) effective 1 October 2016.

Accordingly, both YBhg Datuk Haji Abdul Rahman bin Mohd Ramli and YBhg Dato’ Abdul Rahman bin Ahmad retired as Directors of the Company upon the conclusion of the 26th AGM held on 29 September 2016.

The Board of Directors (“Board”) of DRB-HICOM express its deepest appreciation and gratitude to YBhg Datuk Haji Abdul Rahman bin Mohd Ramli and YBhg Dato“ Abdul Rahman bin Ahmad for their contributions to the Company during their tenure on the Board and wish them well in their future endeavours. The Board also extend its heartiest congratulations to YBhg Dato“ Abdul Rahman on his new appointment and wish him every success in his new post.

DRB-HICOM Berhad (“DRB-HICOM” or “Group”) clarified today that the price tag of The Verge is not 40% below the earlier aborted deal as reported in several newspapers on 23 September 2016, where a comparison was made between the price tag of SGD317 million in the earlier aborted sale and the current transaction price of SGD189.75 million.

DRB-HICOM Berhad (DRB-HICOM) via its wholly-owned subsidiary company, HICOM Megah Sdn Bhd (HICOM Megah), has secured a buyer at a price of SGD189.75 million. The indicative purchase consideration under the aborted sale to Evolutyon Real Estate Investment Holding Pte. Ltd. of SGD317 million is prior to the agreed adjustments which substantially comprise the redemption of Corwin“s outstanding loan facility amounting to SGD85.52 million, whereas under the current transaction announced on 22 September 2016, the said loan facility will remain in Corwin.

“In this regard, the appropriate comparison should be drawn from net sale proceeds (which appear in Section 8: utilisation of proceeds from proposed disposal in our respective Bursa announcements dated 21 December 2015 and 22 September 2016), which is SGD210.08 million against SGD189.75 million, a lower difference of 9.67%,” said Dato“ Sri Syed Faisal Albar, Group Managing Director of DRB-HICOM Berhad.

“Hence, we wish to deny the statement that the current transaction is lower than the aborted sale by 40% as quoted by the media,” concluded Dato“ Sri Syed Faisal Albar.

DRB-HICOM Berhad (“DRB-HICOM” or “Group”) registered a revenue of RM2.50 billion for the first quarter ended 30 June 2016. For the same period, the Group incurred a pre-tax loss of RM121.34 million.

The lower financial results were mainly attributed to lower sales of motor vehicles by the Group“s automotive companies reflecting the decline of total industry volume by 6.3% during the April-June 2016 as compared to the corresponding period in 2015. The Group“s Services sector however, achieved higher revenue on account of improved performance of the Group“s banking and logistics businesses.

In view of the slower overall economic growth and competitive market conditions, the Group will remain focused on its business consolidation to ensure continuous growth and sustainability of the businesses. The shareholders of the Group recently gave their nod to consolidate its logistics businesses via the integration of services by KL Airport Services Sdn Bhd, Konsortium Logistik Berhad and DRB-HICOM Asia Cargo Express Sdn Bhd into Pos Malaysia Berhad. This exercise is expected to be completed by end of September 2016 and will subsequently result in Pos Malaysia Berhad becoming a 53.5% subsidiary company of the Group.

The integration of logistic businesses within the Group will reduce the Group“s dependency on the Automotive sector and will help to streamline and enhance the synergies within the postal and logistics businesses, as well as to tap on the growing demand of e-commerce services.

The Group is also focused on the ongoing execution of a strategic turnaround plan for PROTON. As part of the plan, PROTON is currently undertaking a request for proposal exercise to identify a strategic partner by the first half of 2017 to help grow its automotive business.

The recent launches of the new Perdana and popular Persona models are expected to improve the growth of Group“s automotive sector. PROTON is also scheduled to roll out new models in the coming months.

SHAH ALAM, Thursday, 28 July 2016 – In an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) today, DRB-HICOM Berhad (DRB-HICOM) shareholders voted in favour of the disposal of the entire issued and paid-up share capital of KL Airport Services Sdn Bhd (KLAS) to Pos Malaysia Berhad for a total consideration of RM749.35 million to be satisfied via the issuance of 225,030,030 new ordinary shares of RM0.50 each in Pos Malaysia at an issue price of RM3.33 per Pos Malaysia share.

The transaction is seen as DRB-HICOM“s move to strengthen the Group“s portfolio, as well as to consolidate all of its postal and logistics businesses under one umbrella within Pos Malaysia.

“The Group sees the growth of the logistics industry in Malaysia as an opportunity that must be captured immediately. This merged businesses between Pos Malaysia and KLAS will create an end-to-end integrated logistics fulfilment provider encapsulating services such as warehousing, haulage, courier, custom clearance at ports and airports, to cater for both domestic and regional businesses,” said DRB-HICOM Berhad“s Chairman, Brigadier General (K) Tan Sri Dato“ Sri (Dr.) Hj. Mohd Khamil Jamil during the EGM. “This will invariably reduce the Group“s current dependence on the automotive and properties sectors which are highly competitive and more sensitive to economic cycles”, added Tan Sri Khamil. At present, revenue contribution to the Group from automotive and properties sectors account for more than 80%. With this move, it is expected that revenue from the Group“s services sector will increase to about 50% over the next five years.

Currently, DRB-HICOM has a combined warehouse capacity of 1.78 million square feet. In addition, the recent acquisition of DRB-HICOM Asia Cargo Express Sdn Bhd (ACE) also provides an additional platform to complete KLAS“ foothold in the entire logistics eco-system; including air logistics. ACE presently operates two Boeing 737-400 freighters, with plans already in place to expand its fleet to six aircrafts over the next five years.

Tan Sri Dato“ Sri (Dr.) Hj. Mohd Khamil added: “The Group will be well-positioned to provide not only the first and last mile services, but also the intermediate requirements that are needed to establish an efficient integrated logistics solution, particularly in the fast expanding e-commerce sector. This is a strategic shift by Pos Malaysia to mitigate the eroding traditional mail business to remain relevant, similar to major postal organisations globally”.

At the same EGM, the Group“s shareholders also voted in favour to the disposal of part of a freehold industrial land situated in Section 28, Shah Alam to Pos Malaysia for RM69 million to be satisfied via the issuance of 20,720,721 new Pos Malaysia shares at an issue price of RM3.33 per Pos Malaysia share. “This land disposal would allow Pos Malaysia to expand its warehouse offerings in order to become a full-fledged integrated logistics player,” added Tan Sri Khamil.

Upon completion of both disposals, DRB-HICOM“s equity interest in Pos Malaysia will increase from 32.2 % to 53.5%, thereby resulting in Pos Malaysia becoming a subsidiary of DRB-HICOM. For the same purpose, Pos Malaysia will be holding their EGM to seek approval from its shareholders on these transactions on 18 August 2016.

SHAH ALAM, Thursday, July 2016 – DRB-HICOM Berhad (“DRB-HICOM”) has appointed Shaharul Farez Hassan as its Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Properties, Corporate Planning and Strategy effective 15 July this year.

Shaharul Farez, 46, was formerly the Executive Vice President of Malakoff Corporation Bhd. Among the key positions held by him previously were as Group Chief Executive Officer of Tradewinds Corporation Bhd and Group Chief Financial Officer of Pernas International Holdings Bhd.

He holds a Master“s degree in Business Administration from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, USA as well a Bachelor“s of Science degree in Economics and Accounting from University of Bristol, United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, DRB-HICOM also announced that Datuk Razeek Md Hussain has been re-designated as its Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Services, Education and Defence, whilst Dato“ Harith Abdullah continues to be the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Automotive, Distribution and Manufacturing & Engineering.

At the same time, Dato“ Mohd Zain Hassan has been appointed as Head of Concession Business, overseeing both Alam Flora and PUSPAKOM to reflect the importance of the concession business to the Group.

“Along with Shaharul Farez coming on board DRB-HICOM with his extensive experience in financial and corporate operations, this re-organisation of senior leadership talent is to commensurate with our overall business focus and alignment, as well as to chart new growth for the Group,” said Dato“ Sri Syed Faisal Albar, Group Managing Director of DRB-HICOM Berhad.

SHAH ALAM, Tuesday, 31 May 2016 – DRB-HICOM Berhad (“DRB-HICOM” or “Group”) today announced revenue of RM12.17 billion for the financial year ended 31 March 2016.

The Group“s performance during the financial year excluding PROTON“s results had been commendable. Amongst the businesses within the Group which recorded healthy growth include the growing coverage of Alam Flora“s solid waste management and increasing demand for its public cleansing services, Honda Malaysia“s record-breaking sales and the upgrading of the International College of Automotive (ICAM) into a full-fledged university called the DRB-HICOM University of Automotive Malaysia (DHU) in February 2016 within a span of about five years.

Another of DRB-HICOM“s subsidiary, Composites Technology Research Malaysia (CTRM) improved on its overall business with RM12 billion to its order book. New contracts signed or extended during the financial period included those with MD Helicopters US, Spirit AeroSystems Inc. and UTC Aerospace Systems.

Nevertheless, the Group incurred a pre-tax loss of RM821.27 million compared with a pre-tax profit of RM501.83 million in the previous year. The losses were attributed largely to the poor performance of PROTON“s group with lower sales of motor vehicles amidst stiff competition, volatility in foreign exchange rates and weak consumer sentiment. The weak foreign exchange affected PROTON’s raw material cost, the lack of new models during the financial period and reduced profit margins. In addition, PROTON made provisions relating to certain non-recurring charges which had affected its bottom-line.

While the Group expects the outlook to remain challenging given the tough operating environment, it remains confident in a turnaround of PROTON. The Group has commenced on a strategic Turnaround Plan for PROTON, working in collaboration with the Government of Malaysia including Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning Unit and Ministry of International Trade and Industry.

The Turnaround Plan involves a financial assistance of RM1.5 billion soft-loan from the Government, which is geared towards helping PROTON in its turnaround efforts as well as to expand PROTON“s domestic and international markets.

To hasten the carmaker“s overall recovery, improved sales and competitiveness, PROTON is scheduled to roll out several new models in the coming months ahead including the new Perdana, Persona and the popular Saga. It will also be introducing a new model in collaboration with Suzuki by the end of this year.

Other initiatives by the Group including cost rationalisation and prudent management to improve operational efficiency and effectiveness will help to reinforce the Group“s resilience.

The Group is recommending the payment of a single tier first and final dividend of 2.0 sen in respect of the financial year ended 31 March 2016, for shareholders“ approval at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting.

SHAH ALAM, Tuesday, 17 May 2016 – DRB-HICOM Berhad has today announced the appointment of Dato“ Abdul Rahman Ahmad, 46 as independent and non-executive director effective May 16, 2016.

He was until recently the Chief Executive Officer of Ekuiti Nasional Berhad, a government linked private equity firm. Prior to joining Ekuinas, he was the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Media Prima Berhad from 2003 to 2009 and also held the post of Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Malaysian Resources Corporation Berhad.

A graduate with a Master of Arts in Economics from Cambridge University, United Kingdom (UK), Dato“ Abdul Rahman is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

He began his career at Arthur Andersen, London, and later served as Special Assistant to the Executive Chairman of Trenergy (M) Berhad/Turnaround Managers Inc Sdn Bhd. He joined Pengurusan Danaharta Nasional Berhad, the country’s national asset management company and went on to become Executive Director of SSR Associates Sdn Bhd, a boutique corporate finance consulting firm.

He is a director of M+S Pte Ltd, a joint venture property company of Khazanah Nasional Berhad and Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, Axiata Group, RHB Investment Bank Bhd and Icon Offshore Bhd.

Dato Abdul Rahman is currently the Non-Executive Chairman of ILMU Education Group Sdn Bhd, a leading integrated education group in Malaysia.

DRB-HICOM ASIA CARGO EXPRESS LAUNCHES NEW AIRCRAFT LIVERY

KUALA LUMPUR, Thursday, 24 March 2016 – DRB-HICOM Asia Cargo Express (ACE) today officially launched its new livery and logo for its air freight services at KLIA.

A wholly owned subsidiary of KL Airport Services Sdn Bhd (KLAS), and a member of the DRB-HICOM Group, ACE currently offers air cargo services between Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak with emphasis on reliability, safety and quality.

ACE, which was acquired by KLAS in February 2015, is the main service provider for Pos Malaysia, for its courier and mail services between the Peninsular, Sabah and Sarawak, which currently plies Kuala Lumpur, Kuching, Miri and Kota Kinabalu.

According to DRB-HICOM Group Managing Director, Dato“ Sri Syed Faisal Albar, the services offered by ACE is part of a strategic move by DRB-HICOM Group to provide the regional market with an intermodal logistics solutions and total supply chain management.

Aiming to be the premier air cargo carrier in the region, plans are in place for ACE to grow its fleet and extend its services to other major ASEAN cities. Currently ACE operates two Boeing 737-400F aircraft, each with a capacity of 18.5 tonnes of cargo and a flying radius of 4.5 hours.

The IATA 2015 air cargo report forecasts a positive five years outlook with 4.1% compounded annual growth rate. ACE, with the addition of the third freighter aircraft this year, will be able to extend its services beyond Malaysian shores, contributing to the growth of DRB-HICOM“s logistics business.

Group Chief Executive Officer of KLAS Group, Mohd Rani Hisham Samsudin added, “KLAS Group is moving towards becoming a fully integrated logistics service provider providing an end-to-end supply chain management solution. Through ACE alone, we target a revenue of not less than RM100 million each year, primarily from increasing our aircraft utilisation and expanding its operations throughout the region,” said Mohd Rani.

The launch was officiated by the Minister of Transport, Dato“ Sri Liow Tiong Lai. Present at the event was the Chairman of DRB-HICOM Berhad, Brig. Gen. (K) Tan Sri Dato“ Sri (Dr.) Haji Khamil Bin Jamil, Group Managing Director of DRB-HICOM, Dato“ Sri Syed Faisal Albar, Senior Management of DRB-HICOM Group, as well as ACE“s current and potential customers.

DRB-HICOM has five logistics services companies under its umbrella which include Pos Malaysia, KLAS, Konsortium Logistik Berhad, ACE and DRB-HICOM Auto Solution.

SHAH ALAM, Thursday, 25 February 2016 – DRB-HICOM Berhad announced today the Group recorded revenue of RM9.54 billion for the 9-months period ended 31 December 2015. This was achieved amidst the current challenging global economic and business landscapes which had adversely affected consumer sentiments and demands.

For the same period, the Group recorded pre-tax loss of RM76.94 million. The results were also affected by the stiff competition in the automotive retail market which required heavy year-end discounting and sales promotions to defend market share.

The Group will continue to focus on cost management and undertake initiatives to further improve operational efficiencies and effectiveness to strengthen the Group“s resilience in navigating through current business environment. Further, the Group will intensify efforts to improve the performance of its automotive sector through introduction of new models and continuously improving the quality of its products and services.

The Group will also seek to consolidate and strengthen its integrated logistics services business to tap especially on the growth of the e-commerce transactions. Logistics is expected to be a new growth driver of the Group as it is well positioned to take advantage of its holistic logistics eco-system in light of the anticipated industry growth which will at the same time enable the Group to mitigate the margin compression from the increasingly competitive automotive sector.

PEKAN, 21 Februari 2016 – DRB-HICOM University of Automotive Malaysia (DHU), mercutanda terkini dalam bidang pendidikan di Malaysia, hari ini, secara rasminya dilancarkan oleh KDYMM Tengku Abdullah Ibni Sultan Ahmad Shah, Tengku Mahkota Pahang, wakil rasmi KDYMM Sultan Ahmad Shah Al-Musta’in Billah Ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Abu Bakar Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mu’adzam Shah, Paduka Duli Sultan Negeri Pahang Darul Makmur.

Perasmian Universiti ini disusuli dengan pemasyuran KDYMM Tengku Abdullah Ibni Sultan Ahmad Shah, Tengku Mahkota Pahang, sebagai Canselor pertama DHU. Turut sama hadir menyaksikan pemasyuran ini ialah Perdana Menteri, YAB Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak, Menteri Pendidikan Tinggi, YB Dato’ Seri Idris bin Jusoh dan Menteri Besar Pahang, YAB Dato’ Sri Diraja Haji Adnan bin Haji Yaakob.

Dikenali dahulunya sebagai International College of Automotive (ICAM), DHU dianugerahkan status universiti oleh Kementerian Pendidikan Tinggi pada bulan Oktober 2015. Bersedia memegang peranan utama dalam bidang pendidikan automotif, DHU menyediakan pengalaman pembelajaran yang lengkap kepada penuntut yang ingin menyerlah dalam bidang automotif. DHU adalah satu-satunya universiti di ASEAN yang menawarkan ijazah sarjana muda, sarjana, dan program doktor falsafah yang berkaitan dengan ekosistem automotif dan juga pengajian peniagaan dan pengurusan seperti kewangan dan perakaunan.

PEKAN, 21 Februari 2016 – DRB-HICOM University of Automotive Malaysia (DHU) hari ini telah melangsungkan upacara konvokesyen ketiganya di Dewan Canselori Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah. Sejumlah 230 graduan daripada kohort kelapan, kesembilan dan kesepuluh telah menerima Diploma dalam jurusan-jurusan Kejuruteraan & Teknologi dan Perniagaan & Pengurusan, dari Canselor baru DHU, KDYTM Tengku Mahkota Pahang, Tengku Abdullah Ibni Sultan Ahmad Shah.

Dikenali dahulunya sebagai International College of Automotive (ICAM), DHU telah dinaik taraf ke status universiti oleh Kementerian Pendidikan Tinggi pada bulan Oktober 2015. Ditubuhkan berdasarkan prinsip “Oleh Industri, Untuk Industri”, DHU merupakan satu-satunya universiti di rantau ASEAN yang menawarkan ijazah sarjana muda, sarjana, dan program doktor falsafah yang berkaitan dengan ekosistem automotif, serta pengajian perniagaan dan pengurusan seperti kursus-kursus kewangan dan perakaunan.

Selain penganugerahan diploma, setiap program juga menyaksikan pelajar terbaiknya menerima anugerah kecemerlangan khas untuk pencapaian cemerlang. Zetty Nur Aida bt Ahmad Zahir, 22, graduan ‘Diploma in Automotive Retail Management (DRM)“, mencatat CGPA 3.99 dan telah dinobatkan pelajar terbaik, dan menerima Anugerah Canselor. Noor Atiqah bt Abdul Wahab, 22, graduan ‘Diploma in Automotive Management Systems (DMS)“ pula menerima Anugerah Pengerusi dengan CGPA 3.98.