Malaysian palm oil planter Felda to seek listing soon

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Malaysia has plans to list a government-run plantation agency it says is the largest planter in the world, the prime minister was quoted as saying in the Business Times today.

The Federal Land Development Authority (Felda) currently manages 800,000 hectares of plantations, although slightly more than half the estates owned by smallholders will not be under the listing.

But Singapore-listed Wilmar and Malaysia’s Sime Darby will still be much bigger as both have a landbank of 500,000 hectares and above.

The move comes as prices of palm oil and rubber, the key crops grown in Felda’s plantations, bounce back from sharp declines the previous year as the global economy starts to recover.

“The Felda listing, mooted in 2003, will be announced later, at the right time, after the launch of Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd,” Najib said, referring to the agency’s international arm involved in setting up and marketing oil palm and rubber plantations.

Najib will launch Felda Global ventures later today after he announces liberalisation measures to boost investment in the country, which is the second-largest producer of palm oil and No. 3 exporter of natural rubber.

But the structure and shareholding of the proposed listing has not been decided, the paper said, quoting Felda Chairman Mohd Yusof Noor.

The listing plan has been postponed on many occasions as United Malays National Organisation (Umno) politicians dominating the government fear that the rights of the settlers, who are mostly Umno supporters, will not be protected. — Reuters

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