KUALA LUMPUR (June 30): Muda Holdings Bhd expects its glazed paper machine worth RM34 million to begin operation by next month, after a one-year delay.

Its deputy managing director Datuk Lim Chiun Cheong said the delay was due to some technical difficulties that the company had to address.

"The machine is to produce glazed paper for the export market," he told reporters after the company's annual general meeting today.

The expansion was in view of the rising demand for glazed paper, usually used to wrap and package food.

The machine was scheduled to begin operation in July last year.

It had been reported that the group was pumping over RM10 million into the expansion of its Tasek Mill in Penang, to diversify its product range and expand its presence globally.

The expansion is divided into phases — the construction of a 100,000-sq-ft facility and purchase of three units of machinery from Europe to make the glazed paper.