PETALING JAYA: Widad Business Group Sdn Bhd (WBG) has revised upward its offer price by 77% to RM5.3 billion cash from RM3 billion previously for the entire stake in PLUS Malaysia Bhd.
In addition to the cash consideration, the group also offered a compensation waiver of RM3.04 billion and debt assumption of RM30 billion, bringing the total enterprise value of the offer to RM38.34 billion.
Prior to the offer by WBG, the government has received three acquisition proposals for PLUS, including Maju Holdings Sdn Bhd which offered a bid with an enterprise value of RM34.9 billion including debt.
Meanwhile, private equity fund RJR Capital and tycoon Tan Sri Halim Saad offered RM3.5 billion and RM5.2 billion, respectively.
WBG executive chairman Tan Sri Muhammad Ikmal Opat Abdullah said that it has heard Prime Minster Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s comments about not yet finding an attractive enough offer for PLUS.
“After some deliberation, we have come up with an upgraded offer that better reflects the bright prospects of this company, and a takeover plan that can help further reduce the financial burden of the government as well as provide much needed savings and convenience to the rakyat when using our roads,” he said in a press statement.
The group revealed that it has listed a few commitments for the takeover in the proposal that it had submitted to the Minister of Works.
For the toll rates, WBG proposed two different mechanisms: a 25% to 40% reduction pass on to road users via direct toll discounts and a direct toll reduction of 18% for road users, while the remaining balance of 7%-22% reduction to be channelled to the government for the welfare of targeted groups.
Furthermore, the group stated that 50% toll discounts will also be given out during major national festivities in Malaysia such as Hari Raya Aidil Fitri, Chinese New Year and Deepavali.
It highlighted that WBG’s commitment in the takeover bid exempts the government from paying further toll compensation in the future and reliefs the government of its sukuk guarantee for RM11 billion and other future PLUS borrowings.
In addition, the group said that it will implement AI technology for vehicle recognition and smart traffic planning that will lead to a reduction in traffic congestion and optimisation of road networks usages.
WBG said that its takeover plans will include the development of family friendly centres, shopping outlets, business centres and entertainment hubs along inter-city stopovers to improve the current ecosystem of the expressways.
