PUTRAJAYA (July 17): The government is not aware of major change in foreign shareholding of MMC Port Holdings Bhd, Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook said following reports of a new executive chairman.
Loke said the government does not interfere in the management of port operators. However, any increase in foreign shareholding beyond the 49% limit stipulated under concession agreements for strategic national assets such as port concessions must be referred to the authorities, he noted.
“We have not received any information yet,” he said. “We have not received any notification from the company, nor from the concession.”
Loke was responding to a question about whether there had been any changes to MMC Port’s shareholding following reports that the country’s largest port operator had named former DP World chief Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem as executive chairman.
MMC Port owns and operates seven ports in Malaysia including the key Port of Tanjung Pelepas. The company is wholly owned by MMC Corp Bhd, which in turn is privately held by businessman Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary.
Loke highlighted that MMC Port’s concession agreements require the company to remain at least 51% Malaysian-owned, with the Ministry of Finance and the Public Private Partnership Unit (Ukas) overseeing compliance with the requirement.
He also pointed out that foreign nationals already head some Malaysian ports, such as Port of Tanjung Pelepas, and firms are free to appoint their own management teams.
Sultan Ahmed, an Emirati billionaire, has taken charge of MMC Port as executive chairman, Reuters reported earlier this week citing an internal memo. He stepped down from his executive positions following revelation of exchange of emails with convicted American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
MMC Port chief executive Datuk Azman Shah Mohd Yusof left his post with immediate effect, though the memo dated July 12 did not give a reason for his departure, Reuters said.
Earlier in June, Bloomberg reported that MMC Port had approached prospective bidders for a minority stake that would value the entire business at over RM40 billion, following delays to its planned initial public offering.