KUALA LUMPUR (June 20): Boustead Holdings Bhd has clarified that it has not entered into any agreement to sell its 57% stake in Boustead Plantations Bhd.

The group said this in a second bourse filing on Tuesday (July 20), issued hours after it told Bursa Malaysia that it had "no comment" on a report titled “Boustead said to be disposing of plantation arm” which appeared in the July 19-25 issue of The Edge Malaysia.

Boustead Holdings said it had made "due inquiry with its board of directors, its major shareholders and all such persons reasonably familiar with the matter" and no agreement involving the disposal of its stake has been entered into.

"The company continues to focus on its business plan and value creation for its stakeholders and investors," added the soon-to-be-delisted group.

Quoting sources, The Edge reported that Boustead Holdings is believed to be preparing to dispose of its interest in Boustead Plantations and had invited proposals on the sale of its stake two weeks ago.

The Edge had learnt that some of the big names bidding for the stake included YTL Group, Wilmar International Bhd, IOI Corp Bhd and Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd — all of whom are already big players in the plantation industry, except for YTL.

Boustead Holdings owns 57% of Boustead Plantations, while the ultimate holding company, Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT), holds 10.8%.

Trading in the shares of Boustead Holdings was suspended from Tuesday, following the successful privatisation exercise of LTAT, which has taken control of 97.63% of the group. The counter was last traded at 85.5 sen, giving a market capitalisation of RM1.72 billion.

Boustead Plantations dropped 9.41% to close at 91.5 sen on Tuesday, valuing the company at RM2.05 billion.