KUALA LUMPUR: Boustead Holdings Bhd (BHB) has allocated about RM1.3 billion as capital expenditure (capex) for this year, with most to be used for land bank expansion.Deputy Chairman/Group Managing Director, Tan Sri Lodin Wok Kamaruddin said RM675 million would be used for the proposed acquisition of plantation land and RM430 million to expand its land bank for property development activities. "The balance will be utilised to reinforce our presence in the hospitality sector, particularly for Royale Chulan Cherating.It will also go towards shoring up our position in the plantation sector by upgrading estates and mills,” he said in the 2017 BHB Annual Report.Lodin said in 2017, BHB had embarked on the proposed acquisition of 11,600 hectares (ha) of plantation land, which was expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2018, and would boost the company's land bank to 93,400 ha.“This is an extremely viable acquisition, especially given the robust age profile of the estates,” he added.For the financial year ended Dec 31, 2017, BHB's net profit increased to RM923.3 million compared with RM589.1 million posted in 2016, while revenue was up 20 per cent to RM10 billion from RM8.37 billion previously.On outlook, Lodin said the year ahead would certainly bring a fair share of setbacks and challenges to BHB, particularly with the heightened competition in many of the sectors that the group thrives in, but was confident of its track record and fundamentals.

Source: The Star April 04, 2018 05:15 UTC