Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd’s (FGV) president and chief executive officer Mohd Emir Mavani Abdullah today defended the purchase price of Pontian United Plantations Bhd, saying the deal was value for money based on its future prospects and it being a debt-free company.

He was responding to analysts’ reports which said that the price tag of RM1.2 billion or RM139.20 per share was unreasonable and expensive compared with the current market price of RM89 per share.

“Pontian owns one mill with the capacity of about 90 metric tonnes per hour, while its operations in Sabah are expected to produce about 80,000 to 85,000 tonnes of crude palm oil and 17,000 tonnes of palm kernel per annum.

“The company also comes with RM250 million cash in hand. So if you calculate all these things together, you will see that it is actually a very good deal,” he told a media briefing today.

Meanwhile, FGV chairperson Isa Samad said the Pontian acquisition would further increase FGV’s landbank by about four percent, thus maintaining Felda Group's position as the largest oil palm plantation operator worldwide.

“In addition to the increase in landbank, we are also concurrently deriving synergies and cost savings.

“We are confident that our strategic business decisions will have a positive effect on FGV shareholders and all stakeholders including Felda settlers,” he added.

- Bernama