KUALA LUMPUR: Orkim Bhd’s listing on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia yesterday marks a significant milestone that reinforces Ekuiti Nasional Bhd’s (Ekuinas) mandate to nurture mid-market Bumiputera enterprises.
Further, the corporate exercise also strengthens Permodalan Nasional Bhd’s (PNB) role as a long-term steward of listed Bumiputera companies in support of Malaysia’s broader nation-building agenda.
PNB group chairman Raja Tan Sri Arshad Raja Tun Uda said Orkim’s listing exemplifies the Bumiputera relay race in action and underscores the success of the GEAR-uP initiative.
“By fully consolidating Orkim under PNB, we safeguard the continuity of Bumiputera ownership through every stage of growth while delivering sustainable returns to our unitholders.
“This milestone reaffirms PNB’s steadfast commitment to its mandate and to driving long-term prosperity for the nation,” he said at the listing ceremony today.
The oil-and-gas shipping firm was previously wholly owned by state-owned private equity firm Ekuinas.
With its debut, Orkim enters the public market with a capitalisation of RM920 million based on its enlarged issued share capital of 1 billion shares, and at an IPO price of 92 sen per share.
Orkim made a flat debut on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia, opening at 92 sen, the same as its IPO price, with 5.4 million shares traded.
Ekuinas gains RM276 million from the IPO proceeds and retains a 60% stake post-listing.
Investor response to Orkim’s IPO was highly encouraging, with retail demand exceeding the available shares by almost 12 times, while the institutional tranche was fully subscribed.
The exercise generated total proceeds of RM368 million, of which RM92 million was allocated directly to the company to support fleet expansion through the acquisition of chemical and clean petroleum product tankers, as well as to fund working capital requirements.
Looking ahead to its next phase of national value creation, Orkim has grown into Malaysia’s leading marine transportation company, operating a fleet of 18 vessels and commanding approximately 56% of the domestic market share.
With Ekuinas completing its value-creation journey, PNB and its unit trust funds now assume a 60% ownership stake as Orkim embarks on its next growth chapter.
This transition reflects strong alignment with the government’s GEAR-uP agenda for coordinated government-linked investment company investments under the guidance of the Ministry of Finance, ensuring continuity in enterprise development.
Since Ekuinas’ investment in 2014, Orkim has progressed through a structured value-creation journey that gained momentum, particularly when it took delivery of five new clean petroleum product vessels and acquired one second-hand medium-range tanker.
Through targeted fleet modernisation and rejuvenation, enhanced governance, and commercial expansion, and by working together with management that has equity participation, Orkim has since grown into Malaysia’s largest CPP tanker owner-operator, serving regional oil majors.
Orkim chairman Datuk Abdul Hamid Sh Mohamed said the company is involved in a high-capex, long-gestation industry.
“For instance, when we order a new vessel, it typically takes two to three years to be built from scratch. As such, our growth strategy has been a balanced approach between acquiring new builds and purchasing second-hand vessels to accelerate expansion.”
He said that, as a result, the growth cycle of the marine transportation industry is generally longer than that of other service-based sectors, such as consumer industries.
Abdul Hamid said all Orkim’s vessels in the fleet are fully compliant with regulatory requirements, with design specifications for future standards already incorporated at the newbuilding stage.
He said the fleet currently has an average age of 12 years, a level that the company intends to maintain through 2030.
“While a small number of vessels are above 18 years, they remain operational as they continue to meet charter and maintenance requirements, allowing sufficient time for engineering upgrades before replacement.
“Over the next few years, these older vessels will be progressively replaced either through acquisitions or new deliveries. Smaller vessels typically require a capital investment of around US$20 million (RM82 million), while larger ships, such as medium-range tankers, cost approximately US$46 million.”
Abdul Hamid said that although vessels can technically operate for up to 25 years, the company has adopted a disciplined fleet renewal strategy focused on maintaining a younger average age, guided by ongoing assessments of maintenance costs, charter requirements, replacement timing, and the availability of both second-hand and newbuild vessels, with new deliveries typically taking two to three years from order to completion.
