STAR, 7 February 2011
SHAH ALAM: The Shah Alam High Court has struck out the Port Klang Authority's (PKA) suit against Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB) to rectify a sales and purchase agreement (S&P) for 1,000 acres (404.68ha) of land worth RM1.88bil for the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) project signed in 2002.
Justice Datuk Zaleha Yusof, after hearing submissions of both parties in her chambers, ruled that she agreed with arguments put forward by KDSB that there were no mutual mistakes in the terms of agreement entered by both parties (PKA and KDSB) as contended by the plaintiff.
KDSB's counsel Indran Navaratnam said the defendant (KDSB) had submitted that one of the clauses in the agreement had clearly stated that the agreement superceded all the previous negotiations between both parties.
He said the plaintiff also had argued that there was no evidence that a letter by the Government evaluater over evaluation of each square feet of the said land (1,000 acres) was given to KDSB as contended by the plaintiff.
In the suit filed in Sept 2009, besides seeking rectification of the agreement, the plaintiff also wanted a refund on interest already paid to KDSB.
PKA contended that mistakes and fraud were involved in the agreement and that the value of each square feet of the land should be at RM21 and not RM25.
PKA also claimed the purchase price was already inclusive of interest as stated in the agreement and that it would be paid over 15 years.
PKA counsel Cindy Khaw, when contacted, said the plaintiff would appeal against the court's ruling and wanted the matter to go for full trial.
On Sept 25, 2009, PKA had also filed a RM920mil suit against KDSB, the turnkey contractor for PKFZ, and the project consultant, BTA Architect, in connection with key development and supplemental agreements signed between February 2003 and November 2006.
The suit filed for relief, including for rescission of all the development agreements, and a declaration that KDSB was only entitled to be paid the reasonable value of work properly done.
PKA is also seeking a declaration that KDSB is not entitled to, and PKA is not obliged to pay KDSB, claims totalling RM836,758,459.92 which KDSB had made for the monsoon drain and water supply works, preliminaries, professional fees and variation works respectively under the development agreements.
KDSB was appointed by PKA in 2003 to develop the PKFZ on a 405ha site adjacent to the North Port in Klang. - Bernama
Showing posts with label Ports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ports. Show all posts
Monday, February 7, 2011
Friday, December 24, 2010
Syed Mokhtar gets Penang Port
December 24, 2010
The Malaysian Insider understands that the Cabinet approved the sale at its meeting this week despite competitive bids from other top businessmen and also the Penang government, which owns the port land.
“The Cabinet has decided in favour of Syed Mokhtar,” a source told The Malaysian Insider, saying the tycoon’s company will buy into the port operator and the ferry service between Penang and Butterworth.
It is not known what price the government had agreed on but sources said it will be finalised soon.
Syed Mokhtar also owns PTP and Johor Port.
Sources said Syed Mokhtar was the preferred contender as he already owned ports and airports although another Putrajaya-friendly tycoon Datuk Siew Ka Wei was keen to purchase PPSB through Ancom Logistics Bhd, whose chairman Datuk Abdul Latif Abdullah used to be PPSB chairman.
PPSB is a wholly-owned subsidiary of MoF Inc while the regulator, Penang Port Commission (PPC), also reports to Putrajaya through the Transport Ministry. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak recently named MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek to head the PPC.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng wrote to Najib in early December to put in a bid to run the port, which has declined since the MoF took over in 1994. The port lost its free port status in 1974.
It is learnt that cargo volumes have failed to match Port Klang and Tanjung Pelepas, growing only 5.8 per cent a year between 1995 and 2009, against Klang which grew 14.2 per cent annually.
Syed Mokhtar’s Tanjung Pelepas port began in 1999 but now handles more than six million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) a year, six times more than the one million TEUs in Penang.
Penang has complained that federal ownership of the port operator has worsened its financial position, with net debt rising from RM148 million in 2004 to RM832 million in 2009 — a 462 per cent increase in five years.
Apart from the debt, any company taking over PPSB will also have to find nearly RM400 million to dredge the port channel and attract larger vessels there.
PPSB is already carrying out dredging in the North Channel to ensure it goes from 11.5m to between 13.5m and 14.5m in the coming year.
Lim’s administration had sought to take over PPSB.
PPSB made RM77.74 million in after-tax profit in 2009, up from RM22.70 million the previous year despite revenues falling to RM268.54 million in 2009 against RM277.04 million in 2008.
State government sources said Lim could bring in enough businessmen and experts to run PPSB, which needed funds to deepen the port’s channel and also modernise its wharfs and berths.
“Lim has a few ideas to turn around the port and make it perform better,” a source said, pointing out that Penang owns the port’s land and waters and would have a say over who eventually owns PPSB.
Lim’s DAP colleagues had told Parliament on November 24 that Putrajaya should come clean on whether Syed Mokhtar had bought into the management of PPSB, which is led by Penang Umno leaders such as PPSB chairman Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahya and its managing director, Datuk Ahmad Ibnuhajar.
A unit of Syed Mokhtar’s diverse infrastructure and logistics conglomerate was awarded a 4G network provider licence recently while another subsidiary is interested in acquiring the North-South Expressway (NSE).
Friday, December 3, 2010
Penang joins race for state port operator
Malaysian Insider, December 3, 2010
Lim Guan Eng
The Malaysian Insider understands that Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng sent the bid to PPSB’s owners, the Ministry of Finance. Others interested in the port include tycoons Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary and Datuk Siew Ka Wai, both of whom are said to be close to the Najib administration.
“Penang has already sent in a bid for PPSB. It believes it can do a better job than the current management,” a state government source told The Malaysian Insider.
PPSB made RM77.74 million in after-tax profit in 2009, up from RM22.70 million the previous year despite revenues falling to RM268.54 million in 20099 against RM277.04 million in 2008.
State government sources said Lim can bring in enough businessmen and experts to run PPSB, which apparently needs funds to deepen the port’s channel and also modernise its wharfs and berths.
“Lim has a few ideas to turn around the port and make it perform better,” a source said, pointing out that Penang owns the port’s land and waters and would have a say over who eventually owns PPSB.
Lim’s DAP colleagues had told Parliament on November 24 that Putrajaya should come clean whether Syed Mokhtar had bought into the management of PPSB, which is led by Penang Umno leaders such as PPSB chairman Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahya and its managing director Datuk Ahmad Ibnuhajar.
A unit of Syed Mokhtar’s diverse infrastructure and logistics conglomerate was awarded a 4G network provider licence recently while another subsidiary is interested in acquiring the North-South Expressway (NSE).
But Syed Mokhtar is facing competition for the port operator from Siew, the pro-government industrialist who recently widened his Red Berry media company to include The Malay Mail tabloid, Bernama TV and business daily Malaysian Reserve.
Lim’s ruling Pakatan Rakyat (PR) state government is the political foe to the Barisan Nasional (BN) federal government, which recently appointed MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek as regulator Penang Port Commission (PPC) chairman.
The PPC has licenced PPSB to run the port, which was privatised from January 1, 1994 when the island was ruled by BN. However, the shock results of Election 2008 has handed over the state to PR.
DAP lawmaker Tony Pua raised questions on November 23 over the widely-speculated takeover of the troubled Penang Port by Syed Mokhtar and demanded that the government disclose the full details of the privatisation process.
Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua pointed out to in Parliament that the port operations was already fraught with malpractice and irregularities, as underlined in the recent Auditor-General’s 2009 report, and was poised for a probe by the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in about two weeks’ time.
Pointing to a speculative report carried in Singapore’s Business Times last October, Pua noted that if the takeover did take place, it would be yet another direct affront to the government’s many promises of transparency and public accountability as underlined under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s New Economic Model (NEM).
Pua described the move as another privatisation process “ala-Dr Mahathir” and questioned why the government had not conducted an open tender to allow the best bidder to develop the Penang Port.
Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi said that the Penang government felt “insulted and shortchanged” that the handover of Penang Port was not being done via open tender.
He also called for the suspension of PPSB chief executive Ahmad over reports of malpractices and irregularities in the port operations.
“The Penang government has suffered and contributed a lot through concessions given to the port authority, including the valuable prime land that has been alienated to them... notably, the one that is at the North Butterworth Container Terminal.
“According to the A-G’s report, there were a lot of malpractices here and the failure of the management has contributed to the sorry state of affairs.
“We want the CEO to be investigated by the CEO and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission,” Ooi said.
Monday, June 8, 2009
MPPP asked to take over Penang ferry
STAR, 8 June 2009
GEORGE TOWN: The state government has asked Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) to take over ferry operations, which had incurred RM21mil in losses, from the Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB).
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state government was ready to take risks, challenges and losses as the ferry services had an historic and heritage background.
The ferry services, he said, were also important and meaningful to Penangites.
Lim said he was confident that MPPP could turna round and improve the running of the ferry services.
"We have not made a formal application to the Transport Ministry, but we have asked the newly elected MPPP president Tan Cheng Chui to have a meeting with the Penang Port Commission (PPC) chairman Tan Cheng Liang soon," he said.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Penang Port to hand over ferry ops to govt
New Straits Times, 5 June 2009
GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) is expected to hand over its loss-making ferry operations to the Federal Government.
Penang Port Commission chairman Tan Cheng Liang said yesterday PPSB had incurred huge losses since it took over the ferry services from the PPC in 1994.
"Plans are afoot to work out an exit for PPSB."
On the ferry's fare adjustment, she did not rule out the possibility of raising the fare for passengers and vehicles to reduce the port's financial difficulty.
Tan said the problem would take time to be ironed out as the commission was under the Transport Ministry, while PPSB was under the jurisdiction of the Finance Ministry.
She said PPSB, a privatised entity, had signed a 30-year concession agreement with PPC in 1994 to operate the ferry and Penang Port, thus, there were legal aspects to be addressed.
On the crack in a passenger ramp at the Raja Tun Uda ferry terminal in Pengkalan Weld on Wednesday, she said it was because of wear and tear.
She said the repairs would be completed by 12.30pm today.
GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) is expected to hand over its loss-making ferry operations to the Federal Government.
Penang Port Commission chairman Tan Cheng Liang said yesterday PPSB had incurred huge losses since it took over the ferry services from the PPC in 1994.
"Plans are afoot to work out an exit for PPSB."
On the ferry's fare adjustment, she did not rule out the possibility of raising the fare for passengers and vehicles to reduce the port's financial difficulty.
Tan said the problem would take time to be ironed out as the commission was under the Transport Ministry, while PPSB was under the jurisdiction of the Finance Ministry.
She said PPSB, a privatised entity, had signed a 30-year concession agreement with PPC in 1994 to operate the ferry and Penang Port, thus, there were legal aspects to be addressed.
On the crack in a passenger ramp at the Raja Tun Uda ferry terminal in Pengkalan Weld on Wednesday, she said it was because of wear and tear.
She said the repairs would be completed by 12.30pm today.
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