Hemas Holdings sells Hemas Power to Sri Lankan consortium

Hemas Holdings PLC divested its investment in Hemas Power PLC to a consortium of buyers consisting of NDB Capital Holdings PLC, ACL Cables PLC and Trydan Partners (Private) Limited.

Hemas disposed its entirety of 93mn shares (approximately 75 percent) of the total issued shares of Hemas Power PLC for Rs. 1.6bn at Rs. 17.90 per share today morning.

Two parties had signed the share sale agreement last October.
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Chevron launches Sapugaskanda plant

Chevron Lubricants Lanka PLC yesterday, ceremonially inaugurated the new state-of-the-art blending plant and warehouse complex built at the LINDEL Industrial Estate in Sapugaskanda in the presence of the global President of Chevron Lubricants, Mrs. Colleen Cervantes, Vice President Lubricants Asia Pacific region Farrukh Saeed, Chevron Lubricants Lanka PLC CEO/Managing Director, Kishu Gomes, dignitaries, staff and other stakeholders.

The new blending facility, which is built on four and a half acres of land, has a floor area of 5,000 square metres to enable Chevron Lubricants Lanka PLC to blend with the nations growth better. This semi-automated plant has the capacity to produce 45 million millilitres per annum of finished lubricants in a single shift operation with improved material flow for optimal efficiency and productivity. It's also equipped with an in-house modern laboratory facility and onsite base oil and finished lubricants storage tank farm.

The modern warehouse with an efficient racking system has 1.4 million litre storage capacities for raw materials and finished products. The plant is conceptualized and designed by the US experts, is in par with the very latest global technology and safety standards, a Chevron news release said.

As a publicly listed entity with 49% public shareholding with above average returns to its shareholders by way of dividends and ever increasing market capitalization, this investment will help the company to make a greater contribution towards the economic development of the country with export market expansion. Further Chevron Lubricants Lanka is strategically powered by local value addition through partnership with leading local suppliers such as Hayleys Logiwiz, Aitken Spence, Pheonix and Sedawatta Mills to further strengthen the contribution made to the Sri Lankan economy.

The company has generously contributed to the national health, road safety, sports and education to empower the Sri Lankans through its effective CSR initiatives. Further the company's operations in Sri Lanka are manned by a 100% Sri Lankan staff and the company also has shared its human resource expertise with other countries, giving the staff exposure in foreign soils while earning foreign currency for the country, The company has created direct and indirect employment, self-employment opportunities to eradicate unemployment in Sri Lanka and has made significant contribution to the government coffers. Chevron Lubricants Lanka PLC is a manufacturing organization which is very much focused on 'safety, this focus has made the organization one of the most rare 'accident free' manufacturing operations in Sri Lanka.

Chevron Lubricants Lanka PLC is confident that the new state of the lubricants blending plant based in Sapugaskanda, with the in-house warehouse facility and laboratories would better the efficiency in serving the Sri Lankan market as well as export markets; Bangladesh and Maldives to support Sri Lanka's growing economy.

As President of Chevron Lubricant since July 2013 MS. Cervantes is responsible for the manufacturing, blending, sales and marketing of base oils, finished lubricants as well as coolants to the industrial and direct consumers worldwide. On her first visit to Sri Lanka, Ms. Colleen Cervantes will be on a tight schedule to experience Sri Lankan hospitality and to have discussions with the company's key stakeholders. The global head will also be visiting the market to understand the Sri Lankan market environment to be able to provide direction to the local management.

Ms. Cervantes's who has read for a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Michigan Technological University in 1983 has a 30-year career with Chevron. She started her career as a project engineer in the company's retail marketing department. Prior to her appointment as President of Chevron Lubricants, she was the vice president, product supply and trading, with global responsibility for the supply of non-crude feedstock's to Chevron's refining system, refined products supply and trading, marine fuels marketing, and bio fuels supply and trading.
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Tokyo Cement expatriate directors dispose shares

By J Kurukulasuriya

Japanese nominee Board members of Nippon Coke and Engineering Co, Akira Ikematsu and Hiroki Tsukigawa disposed of 28,500 shares of Tokyo Cement, at a price of between Rs 61 and 64 on Monday (1). On 27th November they disposed of 250,000 shares at a price of Rs 60 to 60.60.Ikematsu was recently appointed, on 16th September.

In the annual report for the year ended 31st March 2014, the company said, "the Tokyo Cement group was committed to invest in Sri Lanka's future". It had 633 permanent employees at the last financial year end. Because the country imports about 45% of its cement requirement, the company has plans to expand production and seven acres of land was acquired for a US 50 million dollar project.

Nippon Coke and Engineering Co Ltd are a major Japanese Chemical engineering company involved in the manufacture and sale of coke, logistics and recycling. They are Joint Venture collaborators with Tokyo Cement Lanka PLC - Manufacturers of Portland Cement, Pozzolana cement, Masonry Cement and Ready Mixed Concrete.

The excess power generated from its Biomass power plant is sold by the company to the National Grid. They have plans to invest in a second Bio mass plant, according to the Annual report 2014.

Tokyo Cement's subsidiaries are - Fuji Cement Company (Lanka), Limited,Tokyo Super Cement Company Lanka (Private) Limited, Tokyo Cement Power (Lanka) Limited, Tokyo Eastern Cement Company Limited (initial stages) and Tokyo Cement Colombo Terminal (Private) Limited, as listed in its financial statement. The first four of these companies are 100% owned by Tokyo Cement Plc. Tokyo Cement Company (Lanka) PLC is the holding company and enjoyed a tax holiday which ended in June 2013.


The group had a six month profit of Rs 1,179 million for the 6 months to 30th September. Group turnover was Rs 15,336 million up 6% for the six months as compared to the previous year.Net Finance expenses were lower, reflecting the prevailing low interest rates.

In the previous financial year to 31st March 2014 the turnover was 28.9 Billion.

The company has a stated capital of Rs 2,890 million, with reserves of Rs 6,700 million. 

There are 222,750,000 voting ordinary shares and 111,375,000 non voting ordinary shares. 

The share price has risen steadily from Rs 27.40 on 30th September 2013, to Rs 57 on 30th September 2014. The percentage of voting shares held by Public is 25.5 %. It has 3,063 public shareholders.

The top shareholders of the company are St. Anthony's Consolidated (Pvt) Ltd with 27.5% and Nippon Coke & Engineering Co. Ltd with 23 %.Among the shareholders are Ms Otara Del Gunewardene, of Odel with 688,672 shares. The EPF has 5,961,062 non voting ordinary shares.

S.R. Gnanam, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer is also director of St Anthony's Hardware (Pvt) Limited. Independent Non Executive Directors include Dr. Harsha Cabral, and Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy.
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Touchwood troubles: Rs. 3.3 b claims by 1,537 creditors

The case for the winding-up of Touchwood Investments PLC was called in the Commercial High Court of Colombo yesterday, where an interim Report was filed by the Liquidator.

The Counsel appearing for the Liquidator stated that he received 1,537 claims from the creditors of the company being wound-up and the Interim Report filed by the Liquidator further states the total claims amount to Rs. 3,302,606,498.

The Liquidator’s Interim Report further stated that the Liquidator has commenced the maintenance of the estates of the local plantations and have provided security to the said plantations in accordance with the Maintenance Agreement the company has had with the investors who are now the creditors of the company being wound-up.

The Liquidator further stated that despite A Deed of Transfer being given to some of the investors, conveying the property in their names, the ownership of such property is limited to a specified time period and upon expiry of such period the ownership of the land is to vest back in the company.

As the company has had the exclusive rights over the maintenance of the plantations the Liquidator who has now stepped into the shoes of the management of the company has taken up the task of maintaining the same. The Liquidator is of the opinion that severe hardships and complications will have to be faced in the event the investors attempt to maintain their plots of land on their own, due to many reasons, one such reason being limited access to each plot.

Under these circumstances the individual investors have no authority to enter into their plots of land without seeking prior permission from the Liquidator, as allowing individual investors to manage their plots according their whim would jeopardise the rights of other investors and place the entire estate and the plots of other investors at great risk. The Liquidator is assisted by several voluntary committees in maintaining the 37 estates of the company.

The Liquidator further stated in Court that he has discovered several freehold assets of the company submitting to Court that a more comprehensive report on the assets of the company will be filed in due course. Liquidator’s report further states that several transactions carried out by the company are voidable under the law and such transactions should therefore be reversed re-vesting the ownership of the assets pertaining to such transactions in the company.

Counsel appearing for the Creditors requested the Liquidator to file a complete list of all the creditors who have submitted their claims to the Liquidator and the latter agreed to do so.

The matter will be taken up next on 19 March 2015 on which date the Liquidator will file a further report and inform Court the progress of the matter.

Counsel Avindra Rodrigo with Rozali Fernando appeared for the Petitioner, President’s Counsel Nihal Fernando appeared for the company and Counsel Sugath Hettiarachchi appeared for the Liquidator, whilst Counsel V.K. Choksy and Shanaka de Livera appeared for several creditors of the company being wound-up.
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