Proton Stake Sale To DRB-Hicom Is Practical: Frost & Sullivan

Khazanah Nasional Bhd's move to sell its stake in Proton Holdings Bhd to DRB-Hicom is a practical approach as the national auto maker will still remain Malaysian-owned yet can get access to global partners, says Frost & Sullivan.

In a statement, Partner & Head of the Automotive & Transportation Practice for Asia Pacific, Kavan Mukhtyar, said to be competitive, Proton needs economies of scale, high levels of capacity utilisation and access to technology and markets.

"DRB-Hicom can leverage its global distribution and assembling alliances to achieve this.

"It could potentially do contract assembling for other global partners in Malaysia and increase capacity utilisation of Proton's assembling units. This may open assembling opportunities not just in Malaysia but the regional markets.

"Proton may also potentially get access to other developing markets through the global partners," he said.

Mukhtyar said if Proton turns private, the automotive market will gain the most as it will be further liberalised in the medium term.

He said if managed correctly, the national auto maker could unlock its full potential in the regional automotive market.

"Liberalisation will also attract more interest in the Malaysian market from global automotive majors. This will enable Malaysia to attract further investments in the automotive sector.

"In the medium to longer term, vehicle prices in the mass market segment will go down. This will expand the market potential and eventually benefit the consumers," he said.

He said a privately-owned entity that is independent of the government and the public will have much greater flexibility in making difficult decisions based on business rationale.
Turning Proton private will also enable the DRB-Hicom group to streamline its own automotive assets in the context of Proton being part of the group, he added.

originally posted: Bernama Auto

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Khazanah To Divest Proton Stake To DRB-Hicom For RM1.291 Billion

Khazanah Nasional Bhd has announced that it will divest its 42.74 per cent stake in Proton Holdings Bhd to DRB-Hicom Bhd via a conditional sale with a price consideration of RM5.50 per share or RM1.291 billion.

In a statement today, Khazanah said the decision was made following due deliberation and detailed evaluation of various proposals to ensure that due process was observed, proper financial value was received and that the new shareholder would be able to bring the national auto maker to the next level of strategic growth in line with the aspirations of the industrial development of the national automotive sector.

The divestment is still subject to, among others, the approval of the shareholders of DRB-Hicom.

"Upon completion of the sale and purchase agreement, DRB-Hicom will be obliged to undertake a mandatory general offer on the remaining Proton shares," the government's investment arm said.

Khazanah Managing Director Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar said pursuant to a thorough assessment of its proposal, which offered a defined and executable business strategy, DRB-Hicom was identified as the appropriate party to acquire the interest in Proton.

"DRB-Hicom's proposal also demonstrated the company's extensive involvement in the automotive sector and its network of strategic partnerships, both local and international.

"DRB-Hicom's proposed strategy and business plan provides an effective platform to enhance Proton's sustainability and meet its long-term growth needs.

"It also submitted an offer price that was acceptable to Khazanah," he said.

The announcement by the government's investment arm answers a long-standing question on which party will acquire the substantial stake in the national auto maker to drive the company to greater success.

For the past months, many parties have directly or indirectly declared interest to acquire a stake in Proton.

Other than DRB-Hicom, Proton Holdings Chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Nadzmi Salleh has also come forward to declare his interest in the shares.

Trading in the shares of Proton Holdings and conglomerate DRB-Hicom Bhd were suspended from 9am to 5pm today pending an announcement.

Proton shares closed at RM5.18 on Friday while DRB-Hicom at RM2.17.

Meanwhile in a filing to Bursa Malaysia, DRB-Hicom which is linked to tycoon Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar al-Bukhary, said the proposed acquisition was expected to create business synergies and opportunities for DRB-Hicom group and Proton to augment the localisation and local vendor programmes.

It added that DRB-Hicom would maintain its intention and interest to safeguard the national car company while at the same time encourage, facilitate, grow and enhance Malaysia's national automotive industry, hence making Malaysia a preferred automotive hub capable of rivalling its neighbours.

"DRB-Hicom Group is one of the major players in the automotive industry in Malaysia, being involved in the whole integrated chain of the automotive ecosystem such as manufacturing and supply of automotive components, assembly, distribution and sales of motorcycles and commercial vehicles as well as the distribution and sales of passenger cars.

"The proposed MGO (mandatory general offer) provides an opportunity for DRB-Hicom to further increase its shareholding in Proton after the acquisition, thereby resulting in Proton becoming a subsidiary of DRB-HICOM in the event that the proposed MGO is successful," the company said.

DRB-Hicom said the proposals WEre not expected to have any effect on the earnings and earnings per share of DRB-Hicom Group for the financial year ending March 31, 2012 since the proposals were only expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2012.

It added that the proposals were expected to contribute positively to the future earnings of the group since Proton was already income-generating.

originally posted: Bernama Auto

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Proton Confirms Talks With GM

Proton Holdings Bhd today confirmed that talks with General Motors Corp (GM) are only at a preliminary stage but did not reveal further details.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia Friday, the national car maker said should there be further developments that warrant an announcement, Proton would make the necessary disclosure accordingly.

The company was responding to a query by the local bourse operator over a news report that Proton is in talks with GM to sell up to 50 per cent stake in its Tanjung Malim plant.

Meanwhile, Proton also maintained that Datuk Seri Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh's bid for Proton is a bid in his own personal capacity as an individual.

originally posted: Barnama Auto

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DC Design Reveals Its Avanti Supercar

Introducing the Avanti, a new creation by DC Design which is revealed at the New Delhi Auto Expo this week following a teaser image few days ago.

Featuring sleek streamline design cues, the Avanti is equipped with Ford’s 360 Nm 2 liter mid mounted EcoBoost engine capable of producing 265 hp with a rear wheel drive layout. The car weighs1560 kg which is almost identical to the weight of an Gallardo but for sure, the driving capabilities are far from matching the Italian bull.

If ever you feel the figures just isn’t  enough for you, don’t worry though. According to DC, a turbocharged Honda V6 is ready to be unveiled soon which is capable of producing 400 hp (135 horsepower more compared to the Ford’s powerplant).

DC is expected to sell 200 Avantis upon 2013 and it will be priced at 30 lahk rupees (RM 175,082), which is not bad considering DC intends that the Avanti will be a reasonable priced supercar.

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Bajaj RE60 Unveiled: Tata Nano Killer?

Bajaj Auto, an Indian company best known for making motorcycle has unveiled its latest creation called the four wheeler RE60.

The RE60 is considered as a direct rival to the Nano, the small priced car launched by Tata. This creation is the result of 4-year hardwork  done by Bajaj in collaboration with Nissan-Renault.

Bajaj insisted not to call RE60 as a car, instead it would use the term “four wheeler”. It is because that RE60 is aimed for the driver of motorcycle engine powered rickshaws which are commonly used as a short distance taxis in India. Hence, Bajaj has no plan to market it to average consumers and rejecting the idea of a Tata Nano killer.

This four wheeler measures 2.75 meter long, 1.31 meter wide and 1.65 meter tall. It weighs as light as 880 pounds thanks to its lightweight metal-polymer monocoque. Notable to say, even the most basic features such as roll-down windows and headliner is absence.

RE60 is powered by a rear-mounted 2 liter single cylinder engine capable of producing 20 hp that would boost this car to a top speed of 70 km/h. The fuel economy is quite good with a figure of 35 km per liter.

Bajaj will offer a couple of RE60 ranges which are a passenger and commercial version with 2+2 and 1+3 seating layout.

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Spyshot: Lotus-Youngman SUV Spotted in China

Although the details are still limited for now, a heavily camouflaged Lotus-Youngman SUV prototype has been spotted driven in China giving as a clue or two about what this future SUV would look like.

Analyzing the spy photos, we can conclude this SUV features two tone interior colour and not forgetting about the multifunction steering wheel. It is believed that this SUV will be launched anytime in the second half of 2012.

source: China Car Times

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