UT Group companies have footprints in Sri Lanka

Officials from Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) were slated to have discussions this past week in Malaysia with Measat Satellite Systems, a Malaysian based regional satellite operator with major shareholding held by the Usaha Tegas (UT) Group of companies. Measat Chief Operating Officer, Paul Brown Kenyon in Malaysia said several Sri Lankan companies are currently using Measat satellite services but declined to name any of them. Kenyon said the discussions with SLT will revolve around how their satellites can be used to support SLT and Mobitel's basic communication infrastructure. Measat has three operational satellites providing satellite capacity across the Asia-Pacific and African regions with a fourth satellite under construction. The third operational satellite, Measat 3a was a US$175 million investment, designed to add capacity to the existing network. Kenyon said the company is focused on growth with plans for up to four additional spacecrafts to expand the reach and capability of the network.

Tanjong Energy Holdings, also a subsidiary of the UT Group, is one of the largest independent power producers in Malaysia with two investments in Sri Lanka, the ACE Matara Power Plant and the ACE Horana Power Plant, acquired in May 2007 through a partnership with Aitken Spence. The Chief Operating Officer of Powertek Berhad which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tanjong, John Dolan, said the company is exploring other opportunities in Sri Lanka and will discuss with the CEB and government authorities over the next few months to explore coal, gas, or even some renewable energy options in the country. ACE Matara, located in Matara is a 25MW diesel engine plant with a 10 year power purchase agreement (PPA) with the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) which expires in 2012 and a 10 year agreement with the Ceylon Petroleum Company (CPC) also expiring in 2012. ACE Horana is also a 25MW diesel engine plant with a 10 year PPA with the CEB and a 10 year deal with the CPC, both expiring in 2012.

Tanjong has a 29% stake in both power plants but their investment so far has been financial with Aitken Spence running the operations and maintenance. The Group currently has investments in a total of 13 power and desalination assets in Malaysia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Dolan said the main areas of focus for expansion are the Middle East, Northern African including Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, the Indian Subcontinent and South East Asia including the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Astro All Asia Networks PLC, an affiliate of the UT Group, is Malaysia's leading cross-media group with a significant presence in Direct-To-Home (DTH) TV services and commercial radio. Bloomberg News reported this past week that Astro stock surged on speculation that the company will be taken private by Ananda Krishnan, with the stock jumping from 6.1% from to 3.82 Malaysian Ringgit from 22 sen. According to the Bloomberg report, there is speculation that Krishnan, who took Maxis Communications private in 2007, could be doing the same for Astro.

The subscription TV service commenced operations in 1996 with 22 channels and currently broadcasts over 100 pay-TV channels across Malaysia and Brunei to more than 2.2 million subscribers in four major languages.