The Edge Financial Daily reported today that Proton Holdings Bhd is well on its way to being delisted from Bursa Malaysia after new owners DHB-Hicom had secured over 90% equity interest through its takeover offer. As of 5pm yesterday, DRB-Hicom owns 90.02% stake in Proton as announced by the company’s advisers Maybank Investment Bank Bhd and Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd.
DRB-Hicom now has the freedom of restructuring Proton without the need to answer to the minority shareholders. There is also speculation that Proton’s Shah Alam plant will integrate its operations with those of Tanjung Malim. Consequently, the land in Shah Alam will be sold or redeveloped.
The report continues to note that the privatisation of Proton will create a sizable automotive entity that would rival the Perodua-Toyota Malaysia alliance that lists Toyota Japan, Permodalan Nasional Bhd and Daihatsu Japan as its key shareholders. The shockwaves of DRB-Hicom’s move will send tremors to certain parts vendors; DRB-Hicom is known to have an extensive automotive parts manufacturing business and it might be sourcing parts from its own backyard.
When asked about the fate of Lotus Group, DRB-Hicom was quick to put the stopper on the rumour mill. The conglomerate also renounced the knowledge that Lotus would be sold to Youngman or be put under administration. As of now, DRB-Hicom is still supporting Lotus Group financially and management-wise.
Read the full report here: http://www.theedgemalaysia.com/highlights/212366-drb-hicom-on-track-to-delist-proton.html
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
So… This is good or bad..?
depends on how you see it. If you are a minority shareholder, then this is bad for you. Too bad that they are planning on closing down the Shah Alam plant tho …
there is a test track in the shah alam facility. perhaps, convert that as public race track rather than construct a new building on that piece of land.
google map the area and one will realise how big that track is, even though its oval (more like nascar race type)
I have to 2nd u on this suggestion.
yes, look like admin are bias toward proton..why r?
then why you really hates proton?
what are you talking about? the admin has been neutral on all car manufacturers. this must be your first time reading this blog.
If Proton is delisted, people will not know whether Proton is making money or losing money. Currently people know that Proton is not making profit eventhough the car price has increased.
In the future, vendors will take Proton for a ride but people will be blaming Proton for the higher car price because they did not know that Proton is actually making a loss. Proton will just be a tool for the vendors to take the money from the people. Afteral, only God knows who are behind those vendors.
Proton’s supplier, that’s the damn reason I agreed for VW’s takeover. It’s way overtime to purge those parasites.
Ask any proton vendor & part supplier, they were asked to cost down every other year while the parts spec getting tighter. And not everybody is going in political. Some were true manufacturers surviving on their capabilities. U guys conveniently talk by the knee.
On contrary, this might be good for Proton. DRB do have automotive parts business of their own so rather than sourcing their part from some lousy vendors, they might produces it themselves which hopefully will reduce the price further. This will also help them to run away from vendors with political influences.
make sense
Funny..DRB subsidiariy is supplying Proton at the moment..so what do you expect? Who is actually lousy vendor?
Oriental Summit Industries which is DRB’s auto parts subsidairy is currently supplying many parts to Proton la….so what’s the difference?
Talk like DRB is without political influence…..
it is bad, if you are a parts vendor.
cheh! thought it was close to shutting down!
Please do not sell Lotus, at least that is one of the smartest choice that has been made.
Buy Lotus = smart.
Mismanage Lotus for 8 years = super duper ultra mega dumb.
But if they do want to sell Lotus, extract the engineering out of it before selling.
Lotus only has the know how to build sports cars which proton has no use for, lotus cannot build a reliable car for nuts. Proton has no use for lotus. As for design you can always outsource!
What an idiot. The engineering department of Lotus is widely being benefited by many big carmakers including Porsche, Ford and even Toyota for its engineering consultancy services. Porsche’s very famous Variocam is also based on the CPS variable valve lift + their own VVT that varies the timing belt tension to change the valve timing.
The most viable way to make Lotus as a profit-making carmaker is by developing cars jointly with Proton, which can be rebadged as a Proton model. For example, build a new-generation Satria that will be sold here as the new Satria but can be rebadged as a Lotus model in overseas market.
That is what I want to see! I am always hoping that Lotus will make better exterior design for P1. Unfortunately, P1 is sleeping in the design department or the Lotus guys is not helping P1 at all. Get buckle up! Both P1 and Lotus! Is such a shame to see P1 looses big time money being for so long. We hate you for tak boleh and seeing Malaysia at a loosing ground in the international auto market!
Whatever the decision by the new owners, the people should not be shortchanged and the vision for Proton to be a global brand should be realized without any hiccups. We hope drb will be able to steer the company in the right direction for this to realize this.
the people have been shortchanged for decades — made to pay an arm and a leg for cars that cost cheaper in countries where people earn much more than us.
the question now is this: Since proton is now a private company, the profits and losses of which no longer concerns the national interest, shouldn’t whatever favourable treatments extended to it, including grants and exorbitant taxes on competitors, be done away forthwith?
let drb-bukhary sort it out themselves. malaysians must no longer be made to subside for proton… yeah, we can dream on. things will never change, until the country changes administrations.
Good, fire that NATO Bahar!
well we just have to wait and see the outcome in 1 year time, if DRB able to improve proton efficiency in terms of supply chain from supplier vendor to end user customer then i call its a good start!!!
In Malaysia, privatization means you go to someone house and drive away his car till empty fuel tank and just leave it on the roadside. The owner will look for the car and take it back. Drb take this lady off the public and will try to rape this company and when they get into trouble, the government will take it back.
Does privatization means those profit money will benefit Malaysian? Does it means we will be buying standardize tax prices internationally? Or at least a cheaper and better looking car! If not, I will be the least admired!
My early guess about this about to materialize very very soon after Al-Bukhary 90.02% control over the national carmaker.
My worry: PRIVATIZATION OF PROFIT & SOCIALIZATION OF LOSS.
Profit after they bought Proton, the got underutilized Tg Malim plant, redundant Shah Alam plant– easily convert to real estate purpose instead of current usage.
IMHO, better VW bought ailing Proton then (during PM Pak Lah’s tenure) instead of less capable DRB. Even though VW is foreign but they showed rather positive relationship with any brands under their control, except Suzuki alliance- rather unique relationship compared to other brands in their stable.
I afraid after Proton has no longer “valuable” assets (l guess Lotus Cars and Lotus Engineering will included sooner rather than later); DRB will sell back the ailing carmaker to the public. Proton used to be under DRB-Hicom two decade ago.
We can see how Tiara-nization of Proton Part II will make the company tarnished again.
different management between then and now… hopefully it will not happen again.
1. VW to use proton facility –> DONE thru DRB
2. Selling of Shah alam plant estimated 2 billion last year speculation –> soon
3. merger with perodua –> continue
4. government assets sold to private –> DONE after pos malaysia, puspakom etc
5. rebadge – soon
6. controlling stakes by foreign companies –> on the way
7. national car no more–> soon
thanks malaysian
8. Better cars due to the fact that incompetent parts supplier are purged -> soon, when it’s sold to private hands that do want to make the national car project work.
9. Proton finally making profit and good name. -> after 8.
Don’t be blind, see the bigger picture.
Maybe:
8.5) sean ZX10 opts for a Perodua Myvi instead of a massly improved Proton because he thinks that Proton is not the national car.
I’be been telling you that DRB will strip Proton assets and will sell it one by one. At the end of the day, they will get much more than what they invest without having to offload Proton.
DRB bought Proton at a very2 cheap price…period!
Welcome to Malaysia!
closing down Shah Alam Plant?? I don’t know if there’re any car manufacturer in the world that closes down its mother-plant/ mother-Factory…it’s the birthplace of PROTON. No way man. A lot of history there. I bet the workers won’t agree to that idea.
DRB dont give a rats ass
It will cost a lot more to move the operation from shah alam to tanjung malim…… itu lah u all dont have peolpe/company management….. just shut up and do your own work.. proton is now sdn bhd… dont want to buy proton go and buy other brand.. dont like the government.. dont vote for them… vote the person who has bisexual attitude who does not know which gender is suitable for him hahahah.. this is not politic anymore this is purely business…
delisted doesnt mean it is Sdn Bhd lehhh… Mabuk ka?
This is business not personal.
History of losing money? Close it down, develop the land and get better return on its investment. Or, sell Proton off, taxpayer will not be burdened when Govt decided to rescue DRB from its failure…minus the land, while laden with debt. I say sell the damn thing, and we stand a better chance of driving a better car.
it is sad to read all your immature comments. CGPA high but no surviving skills. of course it is bad you retards! remember before this?..1) PROTON did not agree with VW partnership. Reason= VW will have total control and our malays, chinese and indians will be the German’s asswipe. Malaysians will not hold high posts in PROTON. 2) Talking to sell shah alam plant to relocate to tanjung malim. That didnt happened. Reason= most vendors have established their grounds around klang valley and relocating meaning burdens to vendors, suppliers, PROTON staffs etc. No one will want to work in a jungle. Take example KLIA..are u kidding me? the flight ticket alone is expensive. I need to pay more for fuel, parking, toll plus it is so far and it’s like bringing along my mattress just to catch a flight. Cost will jump sky high 3) Merging with Perodua. That did not happened. Reason= Only 10% share by Malaysia and the rest goes to Toyota & Daihatsu. 2nd national car is BULLSHIT. Merger will results in foreigners controlling our national car. What is national when the decision makers are foreigners.
Now..all of what that did not happened will happen under DRB HICOM. 1) VW will soon materialize their ambition to use the tanjung malim and make use PROTON’s resources thanks to DRB. 2) DRB will sell the shah alam plant bcoz looking at their buss profile..they know SHIT ASS about making cars. They are just traders…they trade other cars into Malaysia just like Naza. Their interests is to make fast money without thinking about the ‘rakyat’ 3) Talks about Perodua merger is back on track.
So…still good? your son and daughter who love automotive and thinking to be part in manufacturing an automobile–> well, just bury that ambition inside their sketch book. PROTON as national car will soon have no value as a Malaysian company. All will be ripped off. Your friends, brother, sister, uncles, aunties who work in PROTON will soon have no job (the worst)..but definitely will not see the light of climbing to higher positions.
Lotus will be hard for DRB to sell because Mahathir have interest in that failed company.
when looking at the other side of the door..can’t blame them totally. BECAUSE Malaysian as a dumb creature ever created always worship outsiders and no brain to conceal owns country interest. Dont get mad with Singapore because they dont have assholes running the country.
so guys..when PROTON is delisted and no government interference..they can just do their bloody hell. they can even sell the whole PROTON to VW thus making PROTON the 13th brand under VW. Hitler in the new era. YEAH!!!
Immature comments?
Proton engineering? Maybe just a playground for new engineers so that they could move on to better companies.
Proton supplier? Dafuq, they’re the one that screwed with Proton’s quality (from DSZ own mouth!). We’re better off without the existing ones.
I think the people who commented just wanted proton to produce a competent car after so long. If it needs to fall into the hands of VW for that to happen, i’ll gladly hand it to VW on a silver platter.
Ask what have I contributed to Proton, my taxed money.
Ask what have Proton contributed to me, I can’t think of any.
Stop being so naive on nationalism, especially in Msia. Ppl take advantage of ur blind nationalism here. So long as DRB can make it to be any useful to Msian, I am all ears.
dey, how u know ur tax money goes to proton? U think Proton is the only project that the government gives money to?
Why dont u think this way: Your tax money goes to other valuable projects or the maintenance of the buildings/facilities and what not around the city. Not a single cent goes to Proton.
Now please vote in the next GE and choose your preferred government
my money doesn’t just goes to proton. it goes to all the cronies because all the cars by the other manufacturers get jacked up, so you pay through your noses for toyota nissan honda whatever. want the cheapest car in the one of the world’s most expensive automotive market (that’s malaysia, btw, dumbass), then buy proton.
go look into the history of proton, and you can see how much mahathir & kronis have poured into this bloody kompeni. of course, not all our taxed monies go there, cos there’s also lembugate, port klang blackhole, perwaja, scorpene submarines, boustead building patrol boats at RM1bil a piece (patrol boat! not aircraft carrier, you know?).
they also bailed MISC (who’s his daddy), LRT, monorail, dabbled disastrously in the world tin market, tried to make money on the british pound and got fried by Soros. dan lain-lain lagi. wunderful innit? teruskan sokongan anda.
It’s not his money but it is tax payers’ money. Regardless of who they are, collectively the money belongs to every tax payer, not the government. If you are paying tax, do you want part of your money goes into someone else’s pocket or would you rather get a better public transport system for example?
can you proof your money alone goes to proton? i dont think you will be able to trace it. and its a sin to blindly accuse something that cannot be proved. so watch out your mouth dude!
Funny, i did not mention that my money ALONE all goes to Proton. So my question back to you, how can you prove that not even 1 cent from the government (which the money was contributed by the tax payers) goes to P1 from 1983 until now? It’s an added sin to blindly accuse ppl and threaten them. But no worries, I ll forgive you for your naiveness.
you think you tax money goes to proton and proton doest give u anything?
proton contribution:
bcoz of proton existence (now)… rm 3 billion in national revenue comes from auto industry… that 3 billion is used to subsidized your life…
I love all of you guys comments, really deep insight and well written, never thought Paultan readers could be this elaborate before…..
paultan commenters, you have grew up……
DRB has Honda, Mercedes, VW and Suzuki in its stable. But the engineering and production are not controlled by DRB. I suspect at most they can only be involved in the management only. IMHO, the way Proton would be run the same way. The big difference is Proton is owned by DRB and it would do what it think is the best for its shareholders. Moreso, it can be a private company, therefore there’s no need for public accountability to its shareholders.
Will they close down Shah Alam? It does not make any difference as the decision at Proton then years ago was to close it down. Maybe the cost of relocation which can run into many millions is the turn off. It is not easy to relocate a car production platform. We are talking of months of stopped production time.
Will the vendors suffer? Most vendors have warehouses in Proton City already. Logistically it does not affect too much. DRB has a few subsidiaries who are into metal stamping and sub assembilies such as rear axles, instrument panel, hand brakes, seats, filler pipes, etc. These companies are already in full capacity. They too need development time as new replacement vendors. There’s a lot of testing and more testing to be done and it take years.
It is DRB who need VW more than the other way around. It would be DRB is projecting VW as a partner in Proton and therefore it would run some shine on it and linked to the better quality cars.
So VW will come in at their own terms and as a result they will bring their own team, suppliers from overseas. VW would ask their suppliers to jv with local companies but the shots will be called by foreigners under the pretext that it is a localisation exercise and quality improvement program. Then Proton will be reduced from being a National Car to a semi National car. All the profits would be sucked out. The bosses would be foreigners and locals would be just” Yesman” Malaysians will be left to tighten the nuts/ bolts and do all the manual work just like other “National” car assemblers we have here.
I just do not believe after 30 years of hard work and even though Malaysians are not so smart and fast learners, the cars produced is low quality but running…all these would be gone within the next 2 to 3 years. Just think of the 150,000 workers and their families who are affected…..some spent a lifetime saving to study automotive engineering, some spent a lifetime thinking Proton is a iron rice bowl…and just because someone decide to buy it and all the hopes are on shaky ground.
It is rather sad that DSZ had left ( I know he is still there as of now) and I am sure he had fought hard against how the company restructuring should be.
IMHO, DRB did not just buy Proton shares but it is much more than that. The whole package include moral and social responsibility, the National dignity and its social obligation towards the future of Malaysian Auto industry.
Just my 2 sen …..
this length of comments worth more than 2 cents…
Where can u find, comment longer than the news itself. Only on Paultan.
This story of DRB sounded like a growing Hitler Company to me. Funny anyway…. Are they crony?
Crony means something like business among friends while outsiders are kept out. In business, if there’s no interest or knowledge, no one is interested to be involved. Proton is too big a pie and complicated to swallow and not many company dare touch it.
DRB has interest in automotive industry and it is therefore a natural progression to explore and take on any business opportunity to synergise with its strengths. Having said that, does it have the expertise to meddle in the operations or it should remain in the strategic management of Proton holdings.
Or shall it look at itself and see if its present internal setup is strong enough to bring about drastic changes.
Normally when one acquire a newco, 2 key positions are controlled, ie the CEO and the CFO. The rest will fall in place. That is the right of the new owners. They paid for it and they are entitled to do what they want to do with it.
Just my 2 sen……
13th brand under VW? Aisey, lets hope VW buy another brand before that so Proton will be No. 14. 13 is not a good number hahaha….
Sekarang baru nak komit untuk jadi baik? dah terlambat bro. Gulungkan PROTON jer. Let DRB HICOM make sure of current PROTON’s facilities to assemble foreign cars ;)
if they assemble the foreign cars….can u afford to buy it….?? even ckd version of foreign cars here sold very expensive….typical malaysian….not appreciating their own product but idolize other’s…..at the end….we still suffer….
i think the move to tg malim will be good for the long run, but i am sure there will be the initial resistance…..change is always difficult.
the impact to shah alam itself will be significant, many proton folks are already entrenched there, small businesses will be impacted, perhaps shah alam itself will be quieter, but good all round perhaps..?
look at vw and wolfsburg; tg malim was based on that model. proton city set to grow..
Closing of Proton Shah Alam is unthinkable given the mammoth task and gigantic magnitude of transfering the equipment plus huge protest from the workers – extremely impractical. The only solution to the underutilized Tg. Malim plant is to open up the assembly line to another Manufacturer, VW is the obvious candidate.
Da fuq lah. Proton shuld return all our hard earned money and some of us paid with our life for esok sebentar lusaaaa mungkin product.
Wow……now proton become fully global ……. No more govt bias so Price can match non-proton cars like vw , become expensive also lor…..
Ok la tu……. Kasi jual itu Lotus lg bagus sbb mau tanggung banyak mahal , mostly mat saleh kena pakai £ not RM. Tak ramai org M’sia mampu beli Lotus pun……
Yalahtu, suruh lotus tolong design keta serupa suruh Lamborghini design satu kancil!
all you Protong support has really no idea what is happening with this privatization means, it means all the $$ pump in by the G over the 25 years will be PRIVATIZATION by the DRB group!!!!!!
Many ppl even at this blog hardly understand the fact of auto industry in Malaysia.
dey macha, government already got back its money from Proton when Khazanah sold all its stakes in proton to DRBHCOM. if you dont know shit, you had better shut your mouth. throughout the years also, government as a major shareholder got its return in terms of dividend and what not.
what is NAP now? needed to help fund the cronies? what national project?
DR M is a total bust and slam to all Msian face seeing they might lose this coming GE!!
After Exxon, Protong..dont you realized many Khazanah asset is putting into Cronies pocket?
All those who claim pride of a National Car is totally slap by the face now.
so… with work Khazanah la… apa susah mau kecoh2…
I couldn’t care less, because Proton does not produce the ultimate driving machine.
where are you from Tony Montana? From Malaysia or from ASS? that exact mentality of yours contributes to the havoc in Malaysia..couldnt care less. I should kick your son and daughter…you couldnt care less right? you live in Malaysia among Malaysians..You need to keep Malaysia interest in check. What DRB is doing is totally bullshit. Proton have been SICK for the last 27 years because of that old man mahatir..please wake up malaysians..how long would you keep pretending everything’s alright?
and that MD DSZ is the most ball-less pussy from all powerful people. He is so scared to fight that “adviser” with no tangible responsibility inside PROTON just to keep his contract with that humongous salary & allowances of his. God gives you life and money , not that old man. Usrah and nazir masjid but doesnt really understand the power of God. Pity..its your fault dude Proton goes SDN BHD.
So, Proton has been sick because of Mahathir? Why don’t you tell that to DSZ as you have more balls than him?
Private owned company enjoying public fund support ? There is really funny !
where’s the prove of claim?
Selling Lotus?
Proton without lotus is RUBBISH!
nuff said.
KOMITED. What else Malay word comes with “ed” at behind. Our language also getting globalize :)
why you so racist??
Actually that’s kinda stupid not to put a Malaysian in high posts. If you put mat salleh in the post, you have to pay in euro. If need to put, only a few ceo, coo are needed. Other manager level is better off be msian since no need to pay in euro.
I don’t know what’s the outcome of the delisted from bursa, just want to know…so is it ok to buy proton cars now ?
so it is not public listed company la… thats all…
public cannot access the account balance sheet…
i have a feeling that drb is a kind of company that only makes easy money..
sell lotus = easy money
sell proton’s land and asset in shah alam = easy money
probably next thing is assemble foreign cars and rebatch as proton, also easy money
surely they look like a typical crony company, making money out of thin air and such?
Everytime proton news came up, people talk about their hard earned money. Talk about tax they paid.
Really, how much was it? Few hundred ringgit to mere lowly 4digits amount per year and talk big?
If u’ve paid big sum for buying foreign brand, it was your choice and still, that amount were accounted for with higher resale value (one of the highest in the world eg 5 y.o crv fetch 94k trade in).
Makes me wonder what have u really contribute to this land of bless, that u keep on mentioning your hard earn. Proton aside, malaysian getting less grateful and kiasuer as days goes by. Not even a slight patroitism in our heart. People only interested on making money, getting big houses, high end cars, but forgotten their role as a citizen of this country
well said bro..
they said they pay so much… but got refunded la bro… they never tell that…
haha
Very well said. The role of a citizen should be contributing to the cronies and at the same time let the cronies screw him/her buta.
So where do you think the government get the money from?
Yes from an individual the tax amount is small but collectively the nation is built from all the tax payers’ money.
You might argue that corporations paid a lot more than individuals but who are actually working in those corporations if not the people themselves? Even the revenue from the products are coming from the people who bought them.
Afterall the money belongs to the tax payers, not the government. The government’s task is just to manage the money. If a share holder has the right to question the management of a company, a tax payer also should have the right to question the government. Share holders nominate the management through a meeting and tax payers vote for the government.
This is not about political party, this is about the fundamental of politic. Who ever is voted to lead the government must know that he is responsible to manage the tax payers money. The tax payer must also know that the money is belonging to them so they have the right to question, comment or even change the government whenever necessary. It is not about being grateful or not.
Which brings us to the second topic; can the new government demolish car tax altogether? Can they maintain fuel price at RM1.90 (yes they ought to bring it down; yet to be proven) when most nation around the world paying equal to RM3 (the least) per liter and beyond? Dont argue with ‘we have oil’ as Russia, 2nd country with most oil paying RM2.82 per liter.
Car tax in malaysia contribute billions to the government. Can they just snap fingers and let it disappear just like that in the from the government budget? What will they do to convert those income? Can the new government do that?
You talked about corporation paying higher, tenth of thousands tax and we built those corporation, we worked there. But does the corporation really value us and give equal return? Are u happy with your salary? Is it enough compared to your amount of work and stress? Sometimes it needs a ‘government’ to tell them what to pay (training via HRDF, EPF, SOCSO for example) coz sometimes corporation dont give $hit on our well being. They only focus on giving sharholders three-fold return annually, while only selected few being taken care. Cronism is it?
Being us, its still matter of gratefulness. Though under-paid, bullied by the corporation and the G, we still can live comfortably in this land. At least we have less natural disaster. Thank to holy god.
Why should they demolish the car tax? They could formulate the structure to promote foreign automotive investment into the country. Instead they formulated the tax structure to benefit Proton and Proton is used to channel the money into incapable vendors belonging to selected individuals. These are the people who take their employees for granted.
Thailand does not have their own automotive brand but they managed to promote the car manufacturers to invest in Thailand and build their capable vendor ecosystem in the country. In the end the people got the jobs, gain the knowledge and can afford to have quality locally produced cars even without having their own brand.
What we got now is just the pride of having our own brand which even our own people are reluctant to buy.
Now that Potong is a private entity, all protection and tongkat must be removed immediately!
With laws that encourage automotive monopoly, who wont want a chunk of the local automotive market?
As for all this crap about being an international player, proton is actually saying “i can beat any of the big boys straight up, but i prefer to use my training wheels.”
As for the loss that proton is purportedly making; lol. Take your eyes away from the mainstream media for two seconds then you’ll know whats going on.
at least we malaysians wont need to be poorer with proton losing billions of ringgit..the only thing sustaining proton was the petroleum industry..nevertheless, nt much will change as we the rakyat dont really get much frm the latter industry anyway.. privatizing proton well, on one far end of the moon may improve it’s quality with stricter quality control, (hopefully) and besides every company would want to make money nt lose money like proton was doing, right? On the other hand, I can see so many ways a top few are going to continue profiting frm proton while the company continues to suffer..nevertheless everything can happen mah in ths country..Malaysia boleh! ps:i wonder hw many ppl got hired to continue putting supportive comments for proton here..hmmm..
We are witnessing either a Transformation or a Destruction.
Brace yourself folks, this is just the beginning.
More will come. And it ain’t nice.
Courtesy of doa-doa org teraniayai (for the past 27 years).
welcome back mr syoh…
So… living as happy man now?
So how about the annual R&D grant by govt to Protongkat?
Still given out? Same amount RM400m-500m from rakyat money but still produce crap? How rakyat being informed how it spent in detail?
Told ya this is same wayang kulit lah.
Now it’s private entity. Bet how long DRB can waste money on Protongkat?
Don’t worry, DRB call Uncle EPF to help bail it out.
Then Uncle EPF wasted RM Billions more to PRotongkat. But still failed.
Finally Uncle EPF give up and call Khazanah to take over again!
Final excuse by Khazanah? “It’s good investment good business model in Protongkat”.
DRB-EPF-Khazanah cycle of take-over clowns and wastage craps. WHAT A JOKE!
WOW!!!
FORTUNE TELLER IS HERE…
please tell me, what number will be out tomorrow? i wanna buy…
Once delisted, the accs are off limits to public. Mamak and gang ca do whatever they want. For example, we will not know how much garment grants given to Protong, how much tax refund Proton gets(Protong now pays income taxes and then get all of it back via tax refund), So much information will not be available to public so there would be more opportunities to screw Malaysians more stealthly. Wonderful, isn’t it?
yeah.. no more Berhad… it will be Sendirian Berhad…. Sdn Bhd….
It is like to be a Bhd, not Sdn Bhd. A Bhd can also be unlisted. I do not think the shareholders will convert the Bhd to Sdn Bhd cos I am pretty sure there will be corporate exercise some years later. Trust me, it is a con job Protong is trying to pull. Our country would be so much better without Protong.
how better?
its just a way to strip proton of its assets, proton has billions in land assets..A
And Dr Mamak not ashame to shows up in the latest Paliah Pray-We launch. (the breakdown already give us a hint)
After all this 25+2 years of National Car Project, it come to this end where all $$ goes to the cronies mokhtar. (and he use St Miguel for Exxon, DRB for Protong)..Ah Jib use 1MDB for many lands…(the destruct of chinese restaurant shows quietly how many land been transfer to 1MDB)
now, the impoart car tax should all be abundant, no more NAP, and National Car project should be officially DONE
I don’t want lebih baik, there are alot lebih baik cars in the market.
what i want is reasonable price. Reasonable international price.
it’s time to buy land around tg malim! how much does it cost now per sq.ft?
Every other new model launched, Proton will say they improve quality la, go global la, bla bla bla. 20 years ago, Proton still had the chance, the Koreans then produced cars with the appeal of fridges and microwaves, China was still fighting the cold war, and Europeans never thought anything outside the EU zone mattered. Heck, I would have chosen a Proton then over any Korean brand.
The landscape could not be more different now. Preve, arguably Proton’s best car to date, has really nothing to offer over a Japanese/Korean/European C-seg car, globally-speaking. And the Proton brand is damaged goods. So how to compete, realistically speaking? What has Proton done to ensure the quality is same or better than Japan/Korean/European brands?
Proton will continue to feed on local demand, protected by biased auto policies.
see the monthly loan different.
proton preve monthly about RM700 plus minus
honda city monthly about RM900 plus minus
the different is about RM200.
That mean you already pay extra RM200 in advanced for every month to honda. that why la honda ok. proton tunggu rosak then baru take out that RM200.
Finally VW dominating this playground, their wildcard(DRB) triumph this time.
I’m really sad to hear this news, hopefully Proton get ready with their survival kit.
DRB-Hicom Bhd has a history with Proton Holdings Bhd. That may or may not be a good thing but serves as a good reminder to DRB-Hicom that Proton is not an easy venture to handle.
After its 10th year of operation, in 1995, control of Proton went from government-owned Hicom Holdings to the Diversified Resources Bhd (DRB) group founded and owned by the late Tan Sri Yahya Ahmad who bought a 32.9% stake, just short of the trigger point that would have required a general offer. Eventually the group was renamed DRB-Hicom Bhd.
Some two years later, in March 1997, Yahya died in a late-night helicopter crash en route from Kuala Lumpur to central Pahang when he wanted to visit his ailing mother who had taken a turn for the worse.
DRB-Hicom was then in the midst of restructuring operations at Proton and the burden moved to the shoulders of Yahya’s long-time business associate and key executive Tan Sri Mohd Saleh Sulong.
Over three years later, in December 2000, under the stewardship of Saleh, DRB-Hicom sold its 25.8% stake in Proton to national oil giant Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) for RM981mil or RM7 per share as part of its restructuring process. This was billed a rescue of sorts by the Government of the DRB-Hicom group which was then ailing.
In a circular to shareholders in September 2000, DRB-Hicom said in its rationale for the sale of its stake in Proton that to remain competitive in the car industry, substantial capital outlay would be required for future plant upgrading and continuous research and development work.
“Competition is keen, especially in the passenger car segment as automotive companies are continuously striving to produce innovative models with cutting-edge technology to meet customers’ demand,” noted DRB-Hicom in the circular.
That was admission by DRB-Hicom then that it did not have the capacity to take Proton further. Petronas’ stake was shuffled among other government agencies and eventually the bulk of it came to Khazanah National Bhd.
Yahya was reported to have been hand-picked by then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to take over Proton in 1995 from Government control because he was impressed with the way Yahya’s DRB group, an assembler of different marques, was able to come up with new models.
Proton’s management then, under managing director, Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh – its current chairman – was said to be resistant to introducing new models because it would mean smaller number of cars produced and reduced economies of scale, already a problem because Proton was and is a small scale manufacturer.
Yahya’s initial efforts focused on producing different models with different looks. In addition to Mitsubishi, he also collaborated with Citroen to make a car from an outdated Citroen model, called Proton Tiara here, which gained notoriety for unreliability.
While the number of models proliferated during Yahya’s and subsequently Saleh’s time, the quality took a dip especially when Proton turned the screws on the vendors to cut their prices to increase its own profitability.
Eventually the then DRB-Hicom group exited the national car business when it sold its major stake to Petronas.
In 2006, control of DRB-Hicom passed to Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary through a purchase of a controlling block by one of his companies. As he did 17 years ago, Mahathir has openly backed Proton’s sale to DRB-Hicom again.
But market forces must prevail and Khazanah must sell its 42.7% stake in Proton for the best price, in this case RM5.50 a share, to the company it judges as the best one to take Proton forward. It is good too that DRB-Hicom will make a general offer to all other shareholders, which may take the total cost for Proton to some RM3bil so that minority shareholders have a choice to either stay or go depending on their take on Proton.
For DRB-Hicom, it is a massive task that it faces. What the Malaysian public wants are good-looking, reliable and economical cars which can stand the test of time, all to be sold for decent, competitive price, akin to the first Saga built with Mitsubishi’s help.
Model proliferation is a big no as well as squeezing vendors to bring costs down. One goes against scale economics, the other depresses quality. In-house development of engines and platforms will be costly to say the least.
Proton needs true manufacturing capability and international competitiveness – that means at some point in time it needs a strong alliance, including equity tie-up with a major big-name manufacturer.
DRB-Hicom’s best bet is of course Volkswagen with which it has business arrangements. But VW will drive a hard bargain even though it is looking for a strong presence in South-East Asia, one of the few areas where it is under-represented.
One hopes that DRB-Hicom’s hands are not tied too tightly by politics when it comes to this, as was Khazanah’s when a deal with VW was aborted in 2006 at the last minute.
It’s a heavy burden on DRB-Hicom’s shoulders. Shortcuts and short-term solutions won’t work. You need a radical change at Proton; you need an alliance. Otherwise, we may see the government having to take over Proton yet again.
Lesson to be learned:
When Proton start up with the Japs, many of us were delirious. Ask yourself this question. Why would the Japs teach us how to make cars and compete with them?
They know if they don’t get involved, Proton will find someone else.
So they came and specifications are tightly controlled and many parts had to be bought from the Jap companies at a certain price or paid for with royalties. The Jap senior advisors were stationed in Proton to make sure of that. The super inflated parts did not help to bring down the prices. The real profits started to flow out of the country and we Malaysians are screwed with high prices. Remember Proton have to pay royalty to Mitsubishi for using its engines?
Then we say why not we make parts ourselves? The simple parts like plastic and rubber are gradually localised. The know how also have not been transferred unless you have a technical assistance from them. That means money to be paid to them…again. Local people are left to do the R & D themselves. This is when Campro tapi Tak Pro was born. Quality of car produced is a gamble.
In the end, who actually benefits? Japanese cars are perceived to have the best quality in town and will always be the dominant brand.
Now we have another opportunity to screw and unscrew ourselves again….
This is what make life interesting…….
Just my 2 sen……..
Some of you suggested putting a mat salleh at the helm of Proton. To me, mat sallehs that reach our shores are here to live the life as an expat, suck the company dry then cabut when things heat up. Yes, it’s a very general statement, but what we should think and consider is taking Proton global with the right people at the helm. Right could be a Malaysian, or a foreigner for that matter, but please don’t jump the gun by saying that a mat salleh can do a better job than a local Malaysian talent.
Proton, please close shop and stop this clown show!
So, public also cannot buy proton cars?
DRB can really benefit by consolidating its suppliers if Proton cannot really sell cars globally.
In addition, DRB can work with Lotus/Proton to develop new high-end automotive parts for OEMs. A good car is sum of all its good parts.
Proton is already exporting parts to Mitsubishi, it will not be long that DRB will design/manufacture parts for VW.
it is good I like that I want sends worker in this company