No upper hand for plantations

Licences only for genuine land owners to grow oil palm, sell fresh fruit bunches

KUCHING: Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) will only grant licences to grow and sell fresh fruit bunches to the legitimate estate and smallholding owners once the courts have made the final decision on land ownership in areas under dispute.

A MPOB spokesperson said in a statement as of yesterday, there were several plantations in the state where the ownership of part of their land was being contested in court between the companies and native land owners.

The statement was made in response to a news report in Malaysiakini which said an NGO, Sarawak Natives Rights Network (Tahabas) accused MPOB of not only suppressing the rights of the native oil palm growers, but also protecting the giant oil palm companies in land disputes.

Tahabas president Ramould Siew was reported to have said MPOB sided with companies who ‘illegally’ occupy native customary rights (NCR) land, some of which have been declared as such by the courts.

Two protests have been staged against MPOB recently, one in front of the office of MPOB Kota Samarahan office in Serian last week and the other one in Miri this week.

The MPOB spokesperson, responding to the claim that MPOB is siding with the plantation companies in the areas of dispute in Sarawak, reiterated that the agency enforced rules and regulations under the MPOB Act 1998 (Act 582) professionally to ensure healthy development of the Malaysian oil palm industry.

“MPOB does not discriminate between large plantation companies and smallholders,” said the spokesperson, adding that Tahabas was welcomed to forward any information to MPOB.

The affected companies included TH Pelita Gedong Sdn Bhd, TH Pelita Sadong Sdn Bhd, Boustead Pelita Tinjar Sdn Bhd and IOI Pelita Plantation Berhad, the spokesperson said.

“In the case of land disputes and where land ownership is being resolved by the court, MPOB is waiting for the finality of the court process and abide by the decisions of the court. Legitimate smallholders who do not have licences are requested to apply to MPOB for the licences,” said the spokesperson.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/08/30/no-upper-hand-for-plantations/#ixzz3BpMtlzCL

The Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities has denied allegations that its agency Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) has discriminated against oil palm smallholders in Sarawak.

KUCHING: The Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities has denied allegations that its agency Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) has discriminated against oil palm smallholders in Sarawak.

Responding to protests by smallholders on Thursday, a ministry spokesperson said MPOB’s tasks include to assist and facilitate smallholder participation and development in the oil palm industry.

“These include providing grants and assistance in the planting of oil palm, as well as outreach activities to enhance smallholders productivity through the placement of Tunjuk Ajar dan Nasihat Sawit (Tunas) officers, where currently 40 officers are stationed in Sarawak including Kota Samarahan.

“In addition, the oil palm industry has contributed significantly towards raising the income levels of the rural smallholders,” said the spokesperson in a statement emailed to the media yesterday.

On the need for licensing, the spokesperson explained that since palm oil is a food crop, MPOB needs to ensure its traceability through the licensing system.

The licensing system currently in place also ensures that Fresh Fruit Bunches (FFB) harvested are from legally licensed areas, he added.

“In this context, in the case of Sarawak from 2013 until July 2014, there have been 304 police reports on the alleged theft of FFB.

“To address the issue of increasing cases of FFB theft, MPOB has strengthened enforcement and also requested cooperation from the estates to strengthen security.

“Based on MPOB enforcement activities, it has found there were 12 cases of unsubstantiated supply of FFB to the mills and dealers in Sarawak. As such MPOB has requested these millers and dealers to provide evidence of their supply,” said the spokesperson.

On Thursday, over 100 protesters mainly from Kampung Lebor protested in front of the MPOB Kota Samarahan office in Serian demanding to know why their licence belonging to the village’s Koperasi Lebor Baru Serian Bhd had been suspended.

On the suspension of the licence, the ministry spokesperson confirmed a show-cause letter was issued to co-operative head Jengga Jeli, but clarified that it was based on evidence collected by MPOB where the quantity of FFB sold exceeded the productivity of the planted area.

“In addition, there was a complaint by TH Pelita Gedong on the theft of FFB.

“MPOB as regulator of the industry needs to ensure compliance to regulations and based on MPOB Act 582, needs to investigate any irregularities based on complaints lodged.

“As such, the show-cause letter issued to Encik Jengga Anak J li is to request additional information regarding allegation of theft of 6,930 tonnes of FFB on 16 July, 2014, which was stolen from Ladang TH Pelita Gedong and sold to Tetangga Akrab Palm Oil Mill Sdn Bhd,” the spokesperson explained.

Jengga had argued that the courts had decided the land belonged to them and there was no reason for MPOB to accuse them of stealing FFB from their own land.

In 2012, the High Court had ruled that the native customary rights (NCR) land belonged to Kampung Lebor villagers and that the company was trespassing. The Court of Appeal later affirmed the High Court’s decision.

The villagers claim to have the right to harvest the around 300ha plantation following a consent order entered in court between the native land owners and the company.

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/08/24/ministry-denies-victimising-oil-palm-smallholders/#ixzz3BUQ48HyM

Siniawan then and now BY MUHAMMAD SYAFIQ NAIR

JUST 25.6km out of Kuching along the old road to Bau is a little bazaar reminiscent of a typical American “Wild West” cowboy town, with a single street where the inhabitants laze about along the corridors, and gun-slingers turned up for a showdown every now and then.

This is Siniawan, a once bustling Chinese village. Even though there is only a one-way-street through the heart of the bazaar, travellers like to stop in it for a drink or even a meal.

Sininawan has a rich history. When the first White Rajah, James Brooke, arrived in Kuching in 1839, he was told that the Malays near Siniawan were giving the Brunei viceroy of Sarawak a lot of trouble.

When he returned a year later, Brooke led a small fleet up the Sarawak River to the place where he had several skirmishes with the so-called “rebels”, a mixture of local Malays and Peninjau Bidayuhs from the nearby Serembo mountain range.

Eventually a peace deal was made between Brooke and the local Malays after Brooke was told that the Brunei government which ruled Sarawak then (in those days Sarawak extended from Tanjung Dato to Kota Samarahan) had been victimising the locals for a long time.

Their leader said the local Malays wanted peace, but were not putting up any longer with the sultan’s nephew Pengiran Mahkota and his warriors who often raided their homes, killed their people, sacked their villages and took away their wives and children.

They asked for a compromise — firstly that the sultan arranged for the return of the women and children who were kidnapped by the “Sea Dayak” (now Iban) pirates.

Brooke, an English gentleman, promised to help, and the rebels agreed that the sultan should appoint him as the “Rajah of Sarawak” in place of the viceroy and crown prince of Brunei, Raja Muda Hashim.

Brooke followed up on his promise when he built his first fort in Sarawak, Fort Berlidah, 200 yards from Siniawan to protect the local inhabitants from the fearsome headhunting Sea Dayaks from Skrang and Saribas who were often used by Brunei to attack and plunder the people of Sarawak.

After building Fort Berlidah, Brooke (later made Sir by the Queen of England), built a bungalow on the summit of Serembu mountain (also spelt Serambo) naming it the Peninjau (meaning “lookout”).

From here he used his binoculars to occasionally keep an eye on the river to see if any attempt was being made by the enemy to pass through the checkpoint.

In 1854 Brooke invited Alfred Wallace, a prominent anthropo-logist, to stay at the bungalow. Wallace, who together with Charles Darwin came up with the theory of evolution by natural selection, came and carried out research on primates, especially the orang utan, and other animal species.

Wallace loved Sarawak so much that he stayed for 14 months, longer than he ever did in any other place in the Malay Archipelago.

Brooke’s bungalow was visited by many travellers. One of them was the governor general of Brunei, Spenser St John, who in Life in the Forests of the Far East spoke of being paddled up in 1851 in a long perahu (boat) fitted with a cabin past Lidah Tanah (also called Leda Tanah, which was the headquarters of the Sarawak Malays) just below Siniawan.

St John stopped at Siniawan which already had about 300 Chinese shopkeepers and farmers. He noticed that there was great inter-action between the different ethnic groups.

Later, he spoke highly about the inter-racial harmony.

He said: “They (the Chinese) are evidently thriving, as the Dayaks of the surrounding country (from the villages of Bumbok, Peninjau and Serembo as well as Gunung Singhai) resort to this place, and there is a constant influx of Chinese (from Bau) and Malay gold miners.”

However, the story did not end there because in1857, six years after St John’s visit, about 600 Chinese gold miners from Bau rebelled against the White Rajah over opium taxes.

They attacked the Astana, burnt Kuching town, and killed several Europeans. Brooke barely escaped with his life.

A week later Brooke managed to get word to his nephew, Charles Brooke, who was a leader of his famous “Balau” Iban army that was on duty outstation.

Within a few days the Balau war perahus went down the coast and headed for Kuching.

On hearing this, the rebel leader, Liew Shan Phan, and his men fled up the Sarawak River and back to Bau.

As they paddled furiously upriver, they were waylaid by the Siniawan Malays and Bidayuh from the various villages.

Scores were killed.

Bodies littered the river and thus some of the places were given names such as Buso (a rendering of the Malay busuk for “stinking”) and Bau (for smelly).

On reaching Bau, the Balaus sacked the town and in one incident they blocked some nearby caves and burnt or smoked to death about 125 rebels and their families who took refuge inside.

It is said that close to 2,000 rebels including women and children from Bau and the surrounding areas joined the Chinese “exodus” to Sambas district in Dutch Borneo (now West Kalimantan).

They feared that Brooke might avenge the death of his officers and locals.

At the final border crossing at Bukit Gumbang (Gumbang Hill), the rebels were mowed down by Brooke’s forces.

Armed with swords and spears, the Chinese fought it out as their women sang patriotic Chinese songs and waved the kongsi (clan) flag.

Only a handful of rebels and their families survived.

On their arrival at Sambas, the Sambas kongsikapitan ordered their execution for having failed to assassinate Brooke.

Then in the late 1800s the Chinese returned and established Siniawan bazaar just opposite the present Kampung Melayu Siniawan.

For many years Siniawan was a sleepy hollow until the Hakka farmers returned to the area. The Chinese also restarted gold mining in Bau.

Last year, Sarawak’s long-time friend, biologist Datuk Seri Lord Cranbrook and the Assistant Tourism Minister Datuk Talib Zulpilip, travelled up the Sarawak River, retracing the steps of the first White Rajah.

Both agreed that Siniawan should be developed into a heritage site. After the initial obstacles, Sinia-wan became a thriving township, that is, until the main Kuching-Bau road got straightened and bypassed it, reducing it to a semi-ghost town.

In August 2009, the inhabitants formed the Siniawan Heritage Conservation Committee with the hope of rekindling the local pride of its rich history.

Today Siniawan is not only a historical town, but a quaint “village” with a thriving bird’s nest business. The residents have also started weekend karaoke sessions where crooners from the surrounding places belt out Mandarin, Malay and English songs.

Siniawan is a short 30-minute drive from Kuching, but beware as you have to go past many Chinese cemeteries along a pitch-dark road at night because the area is still without any streetlight.

As some of the superstitious ones believe, the ghosts of the old Chinese rebels might be waiting for passers-by on the roadside, hoping to hitch a ride “home”.

Angry oil palm growers storm MPOB office

Dukau Papau

The directive from the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) to mills in the Sarawak not to accept fresh oil palm bunches (FFB) from smallholders, especially those from estates in dispute, will cause thousands of native landowners to suffer heavy financial losses.

“The losses can run into the millions of ringgit that these helpless farmers have invested in their lands,” Borneo Resources Institute Malaysia (Brimas) executive director Mark Bujang said today.

Hundreds of thousands of hectares of oil palm estates are now in dispute between native landowners and joint-venture companies that are taking them over.

To-date, about 400 native customary rights (NCR) land cases, involving many of these oil palm estates, are before the court.

Commenting on the MPOB directive, Mark (left) said: “For now, the villagers from Long Tuyut, Sungai Pelajau, Logan Bunut and Long Teru, Tinjar in Baram and villagers from Kampung Lebor in Serian are crying foul over the directive to oil palm buyers and mills not to accept fruit bunches from these villages.

“The villagers from the four villages in Tinjar have planted and have been supplying oil palm bunches from their NCR land, but just because they are currently in a legal dispute with Boustead Pelita Tinjar Sdn Bhd, MPOB refuses to buy their oil palm.

“Boustead Pelita Tinjar is a joint-venture (JV) company between Boustead Holdings from Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak government agency, Pelita, and they have taken over a number of NCR lands.

“The villagers in Tinjar are not happy that MPOB is playing ‘judge and executioner’ by penalising the villagers before any decision is made in the court of law.”

Villagers too slam Palm Oil Board

Meanwhile oil palm farmers Litus Jau from Logan Bunut and Adi anak Ajok from Long Tuyut in Baram have slammed MPOB for its action.

Litus said: “MPOB is making allegations that we are stealing fresh oil palm fruit bunches from the company, without any proof, and therefore telling the oil palm mills not to buy our produce.”

Adi asked MPOB not take sides and to be professional, adding that “MPOB is treating us like criminals”.

Meanwhile, the villagers from Kampung Lebor in Serian are also crying foul over MPOB’s action to suspend their smallholder farmer licences, which allows the village cooperative, Koperasi Lebor Baru Serian Bhd, to sell fresh oil palm fruit bunches.

At a news conference in Kuching, the head of the village cooperative, Jengga Jeli, said he received a show-cause letter from MPOB on July 26.

The letter demands an explanation as to why his smallholder farmers’ licence should not be suspended or revoked for “stealing oil palm fruits” from another joint-venture company, TH Pelita Gedong.

The villagers of Kampung Lebor took their NCR land dispute case to court and won their case in the High Court in Kuching, and subsequently at the Court of Appeal after TH Pelita Gedong appealed.

The courts have already declared the land as NCR land belonging to the villagers of Kampung Lebor and that TH Pelita Gedong was trespassing.

Fresh fruit bunches theft rampant BY ANDY CHUA

Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas has issued stern reminders to millers and traders to stop dealing (buying and accepting) with stolen FFBs.

Speaking to reporters after declaring open a national oil palm smallholders conference yesterday, he said the Malaysian Oil Palm Board (MPOB) had issued show-cause letters to 13 licence holders, namely one miller, one smallholder and 11 FFB traders since its operation against this illegal activity started on July 1.

The operation was focused on critical areas, which included the Serian-Simunjan, Selangau and Miri-Marudi districts.

“The letter is to ask them why their licence should not be cancelled.

“I hope this will serve as a warning to all FFBs buyers be they millers or traders that they must not buy stolen FFBs,” he said.

Uggah said if the activity was not checked, it would bring a bad image to the industry in the state.

MPOB together with the state government and the police had intensified the enforcement programme against the illegal activity.

Uggah said theft was quite rampant in the state but not in Peninsular Malaysia.

The minister said all millers and FFBs traders were to keep a complete FFBs purchasing record and create a healthy business environment for the trade that involved millers, traders and smallholders.

MPOB enforcement officers on the other hand, are stationed at mills in the three districts’ areas to record information, including sellers’ identification, MPOB licence number, weighing ticket information, time of entry and time of exit.

“Enforcement officers are permanently assigned at static checkpoints near the areas of dispute. They record information, including lorry/vehicle registration number, type of lorry/vehicle, time of entry/exit and journey destinations,” he added.

These officers also conducted patrols and spot checks on mills and FFBs traders’ premises near the disputed areas.

In the first two weeks since the operation started in July, MPOB had detected FFBs suppliers selling more than the production of their plantations.

A total of 22 FFBs suppliers were recorded and identified as conducting FFBs transactions from suppliers with higher volume than their plantations’ output.

He said a total of 70 compounds for various offences were issued to FFBs traders and millers.

“The operation to fight FFBs theft will continue at the same areas as well as those to be identified later and at the same time MPOB will enhance its interaction with smallholders to educate them on the legal complications of involving in the sale and purchase of stolen FFBs,” he added.

Separately, Uggah said the Government had agreed to provide RM3,000 worth of fertilizer to smallholders for every 3ha of the crops below three years old.

He said this new scheme was implemented as there were oil palm smallholders who did not qualify for two other schemes as their crops were below three years old.

El Nino: A wild card for planters

by Adrian Lim bizhive@theborneopost.com. Posted on July 13, 2014, Sunday

Weather, as one of the more important aspects for palm oil planters to worry about for their production during the year, is rapidly changing.

A sudden change in weather condition – especially dry and hot weather for a extended period – can negatively affect production and output of palm oil.

As one of the plantation experts Dorab Mistry said, the weather is expected to shape the production and price of the crude palm oil (CPO) this year.

“In the event that El Nino develops, I believe CPO futures will cling to RM3,000 beyond June.

“(Palm oil) production is likely to be affected from late 2014 onwards and we may be staring (at) RM3,500.

“However if rains come as normal and the high cycle kicks in from July onwards, prices can trade in a range between RM2,900 and RM2,600 from July until October.

“Palm oil production is under-performing and stocks are tight,” he said during a palm oil conference in Kuala Lumpur earlier this year.

At the same time, Mistry highlighted some new developments within the oil palm industry which could steer the palm oil market into a new dynamic cycle.

“There is going to be a big expansion of bio diesel capacity in Indonesia in the near future.

“This capacity will require bio diesel producers to lock in palm oil prices at least one year in advance. Almost all of them will be plantation linked.

“Hence, the availability of freely tradable palm oil will become somewhat restricted. It will also require much larger stocks to be maintained.

“Therefore, palm oil stocks will need to be much larger before they begin to exert any pressure on prices.

“For these reasons, I believe the Indonesian mandate is truly a ‘Game Changer’ and will keep palm oil prices relatively high for a long time,” Mistry observed.

On the contrary, he believed there is a small likelihood of production surpassing expectation if rainfall is better than normal.

“If prices of Brent (crude oil) fall and production of world oilseeds is also as expected, palm oil prices can fall below RM2,400 but that possibility is no more than 30 per cent,” he pointed out.

While Mistry, a director of India-based Godrej International Ltd, has his own view on the palm oil market, local analysts hinted at a similar scenario, citing  change in weather conditions and palm oil inventory level being the prime aspects affecting the outlook of the plantation industry.

M&A Securities Sdn Bhd (M&A Securities) in a report dated June 26 entitled ‘Betting on El-Nino for palm oil price up-cycle’ said weather plays an important role in the supply equation of production and yield, and particularly one of the key catalysts of CPO price movement.

The hot and dry weather of late is expected to persist for another few months as predicted by the Malaysian Meteorlogical Department. The situation has cause caustic reaction as people wonder whether El-Nino spell had started or otherwise.

Citing the Department of Meteorlogical Malaysia, M&A Securities said the current situations are due to the Southwest Monsoon (dry season for Malaysia) that has started in May and is expected to persist until September.

Surveys by international weather forecasters still indicated that there is a 70 per cent likelihood of the El Nino happening in 2014.

 

Potential effect of El Nino on palm oil production

Plantation experts have estimated that El-Nino could potentially reduce production up to 30 per cent during normal time depending on severity.

As a result of lower production and lesser yield, the situation could cause the supply of  palm oil inventory to be tight.

Already languishing from lower exports and stocks level compared with last year, industry players are anticipating the dry weather to be a potential factor that could exert pressure on CPO price to trade higher.

Ling Ah Hong, a director of Malaysian plantation consultancy and investment company Ganling Sdn Bhd who shared his views during a palm oil conference, said El Nino is normally followed by a surge in palm oil prices due to disruption of supply.

He noted that historically, when El Nino develops, palm oil prices increase.

Outlining two scenarios, he explained a moderate El Nino will reduce global supply growth in 2015 to less than 0.5 million tonnes while a severe EL Nino will result in a contraction of 0.6 million tonnes, subsequently leading to severe supply tightness in the world.

Another factor which Ling strongly believed could cause CPO price to trend higher in the future, is the tightening supply of palm oil inventory.

Giving an outlook for CPO price, he indicated that the price could be moving higher next year.

“We expect palm oil prices to trend higher in 2014 and 2015. (The) average price for 2014 is expected to increase by about 14 per cent to RM2,700 per tonne against RM2,360 per tonne in 2013.

“This will be supported by steady demand from food and additional demand of two million tonnes from Indonesia domestic biodiesel usage.

“Looming palm oil supply tightness due to past and emerging dry weather will be a key catalyst to upward price movement in 2015.

“Plantation companies in Indonesia and Malaysia should generally fare better this year (compared with 2013),” he observed.

Ling also observed that Sabah and Sarawak planters should witness a recovery in production this year as both geographical locations have expereinced no prolonged rainfall deficit  in 2012 and 2013.

Whether rain or dry season is coming, analysts are cautious on the sector’s prospect at present.

Sector outlook and analysts top pick

Despite the possible occurance of the El-Nino, analysts have yet to call the shot of a “buy call” on the plantation sector.

Most of them are forecasting the sector to perform largely in line with expectations with an upward bias.

Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) which released the palm oil statistics for June on July 10 revealed that the palm oil inventory fell to one-year low.

The research arm of JF Apex Securities Bhd (JF Apex Research) in a report said despite going into high production season, CPO production was lower in June, down 5.26 per cent on monthly basis after growing 6.5 per cent in May.

It observed that the drop of CPO production in June was steeper than market expectations of 0.4 per cent decline as surveyed by a news agency.

JF Apex Research analyst Jessica Low said, “We reckon that the steep fall of palm oil inventory in June to one-year low is a positive surprise to the plantation sector and would support CPO prices.

“The CPO production was under pressure in June as a result of laggard effect of drought in January.

“Looking ahead, we expect CPO production in July to ease further before resuming its uptrend in August, as harvesting days will be fewer in July due to the Hari Raya festival.

“Meanwhile, spot CPO prices are moving around RM2,430 per metric tonne (MT), its nine-month low level.

“We feel that the current CPO price had factored in the adverse effect and expect limited downside for CPO prices,” she said.

For exposure to the plantation sector, most analysts believe that TSH Resources Bhd (TSH) is one of the best performing plantation companies throughout Malaysia.

They believed earnings of TSH is poised to grow healthily over the next few years supported by higher FFB production and better FFB yield on matured palm oil plantation.

The research arm of Public Investment Bank Bhd (Public Invest Research) in a report dated March 20 said TSH’s young Indonesian estates amidst the bullish CPO price movements will see the company become of the biggest plantation gainers this year.

The research firm even highlighted that the plantation company’s young  age profile of its oil palm plantation is the growth driver.

Public Invest Research said close to 78 per cent of TSH’s total planted are are below seven years old, with an average age of about six to seven years old.

“We believe the company will be able to maintain its double-digit fresh fruit bunches (FFB) production growth in the next couple of years, albeit at a slower pace driven by its young (tree) age profile.

“In addition, there is unplanted landbank of 23,815 hectares and 53,430 hectares in Malaysia and Indonesia respectively, pointing that there will be continuous expansion in the company for the next 10 to 15 years.

“In the next five to 10 years, we believe the company will rank on par with big capitalisation plantation companies once it has achieved sizeable mature area,” the research firm said.

In the meantime, Public Invest Research is expecting the company to register strong earnings growth this year.

The research firm had forecasted a strong jump for TSH group’s earnings this year supported by increases in palm oil production and CPO prices which will highly benefit the company in being a pure upstream plantation player.

Nonetheless, its forecasts are based on the assumption of 16 per cent rise in FFB production and full-year average CPO price of RM2,750 per metric ton, which is significantly stronger than the average CPO price of RM2,251 per MT recorded last year.

Following a visit to TSH’s plantation estate in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan earlier, PublicInvest Research said the company’s plantation estate, PT Sarana Prima Multi Niaga Estate in Central Kalimantan boasted a total gross area of 7,198 hectares.

The research firm said the plantation estate, equipped with a 45 metric tonne per hour mill is producing FFB for TSH and is also one of the best performing mills for the company with an average oil extraction rate (OER) of 24.6 per cent for the last three years.

Hence, given higher FFB production for TSH and its young age profile of the company’s oil palm plantation, Public Invest Research is optimistic that the plantation company earnings will be sustained in the near future.

At the same time, the research arm of Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd (Kenanga Research) and RHB Reseach Institute Sdn Bhd are both upbeat about the company’s financial performance for financial year 2014 (FY14).

Obviously, analysts are sounding the drum after TSH’s financial results for the first quarter of 2014 (1Q14) has largely beaten their expectations.

For 1Q14, TSH’s net profit jumped 162 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM52.17 million compared with RM19.93 million recorded in 1Q13.

RHB Research said the better than expected financial results was attributed to higher average CPO price realised and double-digit production growth.

Going forward, the research firm expects TSH’s new matured oil palm plantation in Kalimantan and improving FFB yield to lift its earnings for  upcoming quarters.

The research arm of MIDF Amanah Investment Bank Bhd (MIDF Research) also believed that the company’s long term growth remains strong supported by sizeable unplanted plantation landbank and new planting programme.

MIDF Research in a report dated May 23 said, “Given substantial portion of immature and young trees, we are optimistic on TSH long-term earnings prospect.

“TSH high proportion of immature and young trees will be the catalyst to support TSH’s earnings in the long-term.

“Furthermore, as at December 2013, about 66 per cent of its total plantation landbank is still unplanted.

“With new planting programme of approximately 3,000 hectares per year, we believe the growth story of TSH will remain intact,” the research firm noted.

As for Sarawak planters, most of them do not foresee the potential occurance of the El Nino to have an adverse impact on their production.

 

SARAWAKIAN PLANTERS OUTLOOK

Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/07/13/el-nino-a-wild-card-for-planters/#ixzz39wp15xsm