Sime Darby to list plantation and property divisions by end of the year

KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Bhd is targeting to list its plantation and property units on Bursa Malaysia at the end of this year or early next year.
"The target we set is aggressive, we're confident that we can achieve it," president and group CEO Tan Sri Mohd Bakke Salleh told reporters at Sime Darby's results briefing here today.
Last month, Sime Darby Bhd announced the spin off of its plantation and property businesses, which will eventually see three different listed enties. The trading and logistics segments will remain under Sime Darby Bhd.
The proposed listings will entail internal restructuring, including the restructuring of the group's borrowings, transferring of certain assets including land within the group and capitalisation of inter-company loans.
However, Bakke said the listings will not entail any public offering of shares as it contradicts the deconsolidation exercise.
"If we do IPO (initial public offering), then it will back to the conglomerate structure, where Sime Darby Bhd will own stake in Sime Darby Plantation and Sime Darby Property," he explained.
Upon listings, the shareholding structure of the three entities will remain the same as the current structure of Sime Darby Bhd, in which Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB), Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) own 40.6%, 5.6% and 10.2% stake respectively.