KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 13): Here is a brief recap of some business news and corporate announcements that made the headlines on Thursday:

Creador Sdn Bhd has agreed to invest RM163.1 million to acquire a 40% stake in CCK Consolidated Holdings Bhd’s (KL:CCK) Indonesian unit, PT Adilmart. This amount is slightly lower than the RM170.3 million initially proposed in May. The deal involves three tranches: the first is a 26.5% share acquisition for RM88.1 million, while the remaining RM75 million will come from share subscriptions in the second and third tranches. — Creador acquires 40% equity in CCK’s Indonesian unit with RM163.1 mil investment

Ecobuilt Holdings Bhd (KL:ECOHLDS), which is under an interim liquidator, has secured a RM190 million construction contract through its subsidiary Rexallent Construction. However, no project details were provided. The three-year contract is expected to boost the company's finances in 2024. Simultaneously, Rexallent Construction faces a winding-up petition from Strong Force (M) Sdn Bhd over a RM2.01 million payment dispute, with no response from Rexallent after being notified in March 2024. — Ecobuilt, hit with winding-up petitions, bags RM190m construction project

RHB Bank (KL:RHBBANK) is in a legal dispute with Tokio Marine Life Insurance over a bancassurance deal. Tokio Marine claims it still has the right of first refusal under their agreement, which ends in December 2024, and has sued RHB to enforce this. RHB argues that Tokio Marine has already exercised this right but did not accept the offer.  Analysts are concerned about how long the dispute might last, but believe RHB can easily find another insurance partner. — RHB, Tokio Marine locked in stalemate over bancassurance agreement

Tech firm Green Packet Bhd (KL:GPACKET) said that four out of six investors, originally set to subscribe to its private placement of over 598 million shares, have withdrawn from the exercise. The four investors — Dr Prem Kumar, Roberto Guiati, Chan Yok Peng and Ler Pei Fen — who were supposed to purchase 490 million shares, mutually terminated their agreements on Sept 12, 2024. However, the subscription agreements with the remaining two investors, Chow Dai Ying and Tay Guat Eng, are still in effect. — Four investors withdraw from Green Packet’s RM19.15m private placement

Chin Hin Group Bhd's (KL:CHINHIN) founder Datuk Seri Chiau Beng Teik is no longer a substantial shareholder in NCT Alliance Bhd (KL:NCT) after selling a 3.58% stake, or 59 million shares, in an off-market transaction. This reduces his shareholding to 4.48%, below the 5% required to be considered a substantial shareholder. The transaction price was not disclosed, but based on the closing price of 49.5 sen on Sept 9, the sale would have been worth RM29.65 million. — Chin Hin founder Chiau Beng Teik ceases to be substantial shareholder in NCT Alliance

Fiamma Holdings Bhd (KL:FIAMMA) has signed an MOU with Guangdong-based Zhuhai Samyou Environmental Technology Co Ltd to establish an air conditioning production facility in Malaysia, marking Samyou's first plant outside of China. Samyou expects to launch the facility by mid-2025 and aims to achieve international sales of US$100 million (RM434.2 million) within the next three years. — Fiamma partners with Chinese firm Samyou to establish air conditioning production facility in Malaysia

Construction firm Binastra Corp Bhd's (KL:BNASTRA) net profit for the second quarter ended July 31, 2024 (2QFY2024) surged 171.4% to RM22.86 million from RM8.4 million, driven by increased construction activities and the launch of five new projects. Revenue rose 157.5% to RM230.9 million compared to the same period in 2023. The company did not declare a dividend for the quarter. — Binastra’s 2Q net profit jumps on higher construction work activities

Oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) group Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd (KL:HIBISCS)  has proposed an additional one sen dividend per share for FY2024, bringing the total payout to 8.5 sen per share, up from 3.25 sen in FY2023. The company had previously forecasted a 7.5 sen dividend for FY2024. For FY2025, Hibiscus plans to pay a divided of at least eight sen per share if Brent crude averages US$70-$79 per barrel, and up to 10 sen if it exceeds US$80 per barrel. — Hibiscus raises FY2024 dividend to 8.5 sen, sees at least 8 sen payout for FY2025

IOI Properties Group Bhd (KL:IOIPG) plans to launch its IOI Industrial Park in Banting, Selangor by 2Q2024, and another in Melaka two quarters later. By the end of 2025, the group will have three industrial parks, including one in Iskandar Malaysia, Johor, which is expected to contribute up to 20% of the group's annual revenue. Based on its FY2024 revenue of RM2.06 billion, this could contribute up to RM400 million per year. — IOI Properties plans more industrial parks as it eyes 20% revenue contribution from the segment

ITMAX System Bhd's (KL:ITMAX) subsidiary, Southmax Sdn Bhd, has been appointed by the Tangkak District Council to manage 5,113 street parking bays for 15 years. The contract, the value of which was not disclosed, commenced on Sept 1, 2024, and runs until Aug 31, 2039. It will use a revenue-sharing model, with Southmax receiving 70% of revenue from parking collections and compounds. — ITMAX System gets third parking system contract in Johor

MN Holdings Bhd (KL:MNHLDG) has signed an MOU with Reservoir Link Energy Bhd (KL:RL)  to explore renewable energy opportunities. Under the agreement, MN Holdings’ unit MN Power Transmission Sdn Bhd and Reservoir Link’s subsidiary Founder Energy Sdn Bhd will collaborate on solar, biogas and biomass projects. They will exchange information, propose actions and evaluate the collaboration's effectiveness. — MN Holdings, Reservoir Link to jointly explore renewable energy business