1MDB’s energy arm listing delayed due to bad rap

KUALA LUMPUR: The listing of 1Malaysia Development Bhd's (1MDB) energy arm, Edra Global Energy Bhd, is delayed due to the bad image painted by the Opposition of the strategic development company, said Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan.
"1MDB is a company with competitiveness, that has been given a bad image by the Opposition. It is (focused on) long-term investment. It has cash flow problems, which could have been resolved by the listing. However, due to the bad image, the listing has been delayed and the cash flow problem has not been resolved," he told reporters at a luncheon talk on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) yesterday.
He stressed that 1MDB is focused on long-term investments that it will take time to gain profits. However, he did not provide a timeline for the listing, saying only that it will be "sometime this year".
Earlier this month 1MDB had said that it will revise, update and re-submit the documentation previously submitted to the Securities Commission in connection with the proposed listing of Edra due to "certain material developments which have occurred."
It had said that this included the proposed conversion of an advance by 1MDB into RM2 billion of equity in Powertek Investment Holdings Sdn Bhd (an operating subsidiary of Edra) and for Edra to focus on its existing projects.
Ahmad Maslan said the government has nothing to hide in relation to the 1MDB issue and Barisan Nasional (BN) will continue to be the ruling party in the next general election, despite the negativity arising from the issue now.
Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad recently said that the people's support for BN would continue to fall if a forensic investigation by the police was not carried out soon.
He said the Auditor-General's audit of 1MDB's financials is not enough to uncover the truth behind the issues and a forensic investigation by the police on the accusations made against those who are involved in managing 1MDB's finances are needed.
Meanwhile Reuters reported that Singapore's central bank is in touch with regulators here over its investigation into 1MDB.
"We are committed to assist within the full ambit of our laws," said the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in a statement to Reuters, adding it could not provide more details as investigations in Malaysia were ongoing.
1MDB redeemed US$1.1 billion from the Cayman Islands and subsequently parked it into BSI Bank Ltd Singapore, a local unit of Swiss asset manager BSI.