PETALING JAYA: Kulim (M) Bhd has paid a 17% higher dividend of RM175mil in 2022 to its sole shareholder, the Johor state government’s conglomerate Johor Corp or JCorp.
High palm oil prices had lifted Kulim’s financial results by double-digits even as oil extraction rate (OER) fell marginally.
Kulim, which also witnessed increased production capacity across vegetable and livestock farming, had delivered a dividend of RM150mil in 2021.
In a statement, Kulim reported a 22.32% increase in profit before tax and zakat to RM530.66mil in 2022, as compared to RM433.81mil in 2021.
Revenue also soared by 12.83% year-on-year to RM1.86bil as compared to RM1.65bil in 2021.
A total of 94% of the revenue or RM1.75bil was contributed by the plantation segment that was affected by the acute labour shortage situation.
Kulim achieved a 7.36% increase in fresh fruit bunch production to 1,111,496 tonnes in 2022.
Palm product yield improved from 5.26 tonnes per ha to 5.65 tonnes per ha, while yield per ha also increased from 20.11 tonnes per ha to 22.06 tonnes per ha.
“These figures were higher than the industry averages in Johor and Peninsular Malaysia, which stood at 17.65 tonnes per ha and 16.41 tonnes per ha respectively.
“Although the OER decreased to 20.27% from 20.83%, it remained higher than the industry average of 19.57% for Peninsular Malaysia and 19.7% in Malaysia,” according to Kulim.
In the agrofood segment, the company has expanded its intensive vegetable farming operations from 10 acres to 20 acres, cultivating various crops.
Livestock operations have also grown, with a 9.22% increase in the cattle population to 8,300 heads and a 47.4% increase in the sheep population to 500 heads.
Kulim’s net gearing ratio in 2022 improved to 0.56 times from 0.63 times a year earlier, which the company labeled as “significant enhancement”.
Kulim director Mohd Faris Adli Shukery acknowledged the challenges ahead, but said the company remained “confident in its success for 2023”.
“Our key priorities involve expanding our core businesses, plantation and agrofood, while upholding environmental, social, and governance principles in our operations,” he added.
