Khazanah Nasional Berhad will not be selling its stake in Malaysia Airport Holdings Berhad (MAHB).
This was amid speculation that it was planning to form a consortium with a company with links to a pro-Israel firm.
“Khazanah has no intentions to reduce our interest in MAHB, which is a key strategic and national asset,” a spokesperson told Malaysiakini last night.
Khazanah is the majority shareholder in MAHB with a 32.67 percent stake. The rest of the shares are held by various institutions and banks.
Last week, The Edge reported that Khazanah, together with the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) - which holds 7.06 percent of MAHB shares - could potentially form a consortium with Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) to control the airport operator.
GIP is a New York-based firm which runs the Sydney, Gatwick, London City, and Edinburgh airports.
The firm is currently in the middle of a US$12.5 billion (RM58.6 billion) takeover by investment company BlackRock.
BlackRock invests heavily in Israel as well as in weapons companies that provide arms to the Zionist state.
In a response to The Edge’s report, opposition MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal urged the government to prevent the deal with GIP.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke yesterday said the cabinet has not discussed the sale of Khazanah shares to GIP.
However, he mentioned that the matter of MAHB equity ownership did not involve his ministry.
“The equity structure is up to Khazanah, and they will make the decision and will announce if there is any restructuring of the equity holding... it is up to Khazanah.
“I’m confident in Khazanah’s experience and professionalism to assess with whom they want to make as strategic partners,” he was quoted as saying by Bernama.
It is not clear what kind of consortium deal was reportedly being explored by Khazanah, EPF, and GIP and whether the US firm would be acquiring shares from the two, or other MAHB shareholders. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.