KUALA LUMPUR: ACE Market-listed Kanger International Bhd is poised to become the world’s top manufacturer of bamboo products, thanks to its 70:30 collaboration with the Jingzhou local government in Hunan Province, China.
Newly-appointed executive director Steven Kuah Choon Ching said testing works are being carried out at its new RM121 million plant in Jingzhou, with full commercial production set to begin in the fourth quarter of this year.
“We are in a strong position to significantly upscale our bamboo processing business to become one of the world’s largest integrated bamboo producers in the world, with both upstream (plantation) and downstream (processing, manufacturing and distribution) capabilities,” he said in a statement today.
Equipped with a research and development centre, the Jingzhou facility has adopted the latest modern processing methods capable of processing raw bamboo into a wide variety of products such as bamboo furniture, flooring and building materials.
Kuah said the Jingzhou government is injecting into the private-public partnership a bamboo plantation concession, with a total coverage area of approximately 8,430.81ha over three phases, beginning with an initial 2,428.11ha of fully matured bamboo.
The company estimated that it would take up to three years to process all of the ready-to-harvest raw bamboos into bamboo flooring, furniture and building materials, which could potentially generate a total revenue of 800 million yuan (RM487.2 million) over the three-year period.
“Kanger’s market research estimates the value of the global bamboo market at US$68.8 billion (RM288.8 billion) in 2018, given that it is widely used to make furniture, sculptures, floorings and walls in hotels and resorts all over the world,” it said.
To support this venture, Kuah said Kanger has established a large distribution network of over 100 dealer stores across China, implementing online-to-offline marketing and delivery channels as well as having its presence in a number of online platforms, including JD.com, Alibaba’s Taobao and WeChat.
“To grow the export market, Kanger will be opening new international showrooms in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America,” he said.
In Malaysia, Kanger has set its sights on establishing new revenue streams with the recent purchase of a parcel of land measuring 2.22ha in Kuala Selangor for RM6.8 million.
“The group is actively looking out for strategic opportunities with attractive prospects to invest in,” added Kuah. – Bernama
