Asiatic Development Berhad ("Asiatic") is one of the fastest growing plantation companies listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia (formerly known as Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange). Incorporated in Malaysia as a private limited company on 29 September 1977, under the name of Asiatic Development Sdn Bhd, it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Genting Berhad ("Genting") on 22 February 1980 to spearhead Genting's plantation business.

Listed on Bursa Malaysia on 30 August 1982, Asiatic currently ranks amongst the top 10 listed companies in terms of market capitalisation in the plantation sector. As at 29 April 2005, Asiatic is a 54.79% owned subsidiary of Genting Berhad.

In April 1980, Asiatic commenced business through the successful acquisition of the Rubber Trust Group comprising 3 Hong Kong domiciled rubber companies which owned some 13,700 hectares of plantation land in Peninsular Malaysia. In June 1981, the Ko Rubber Companies, which owned about 10,000 hectares of plantation land in Peninsular Malaysia, were acquired by Genting Group and through a restructuring exercise in 1983, some 9,268 hectares of these plantation land and businesses were transferred to Asiatic. In the same year, Asiatic acquired a further 676 hectares of oil palm plantation and a 30 tonne per hour oil mill. These acquisitions would have now proven to be most astute decisions judging by the development potential of some of the land and the capital appreciation that has since taken place, particularly the 3,200 hectare - Asiatic Kulai Besar Estate which is now being developed as the mega Asiatic Indahpura project in Kulai, Johor.

Recognising the scarcity of land in Peninsular Malaysia, Genting Group started making inroads into Sabah. In 1985, Genting Group acquired Sabah Development Company Sdn Bhd (now known as Asiatic SDC Sdn Bhd) ("ASDC"), whose plantation business comprised some 4,000 hectares of oil palm plantation and a 20 tonnes per hour oil mill. In a subsequent rationalisation of Genting Group's plantation activities, ownership of ASDC was transferred to Asiatic in 1991.

A quick succession of land acquisitions in Sabah ensued for Asiatic, starting with the takeover of Tanjung Bahagia Sdn Bhd in 1988 which owns 8,094 hectares of jungle land, followed by a joint venture arrangement with Landworthy Sdn Bhd (now known as Asiatic Tanjung Bahagia Sdn Bhd) in 1989 which added another 4,039 hectares. Between 1991 and 1996, another 5,730 hectares were acquired. With all these jungle lands fully cultivated, Asiatic, with its long term vision to further its plantation interest, continues to expand its land bank. Notable acquisitions include the 8,830-hectare agricultural land near the Sungai Tongod and the 5,611-hectare oil palm estate near Bukit Garam in 2001 and 2002 respectively. And in May 2004, Asiatic has completed yet another acquisition of some 6,753 hectares of oil palm estates together with a 60 tonnes per hour oil mill in Kinabatangan, Sabah.

In June 2005, Asiatic embarked on its maiden foray into the plantation business overseas. This expansion of plantation activities in the Republic of Indonesia is on a joint venture basis with a respectable palm oil producer in the country, the Sepanjang Group. The Asiatic-Sepanjang 70:30 joint venture will develop some 98,300 hectares of agricultural land into oil palm plantation, over a 10-year period. Following these recent acquisitions, Asiatic's current land bank is slated to increase to over 164,000 hectares; an impressive twelve-fold increase since 1980. The Group continues to be actively working towards adding more.

At present, Asiatic owns 6 oil mills, two in Peninsular Malaysia, one of which attained the ISO 9002(1994) Quality Management Systems status in 2001(which was subsequently updated to the ISO 9001(2000) in 2002) and the others in Sabah. Total milling capacity to date is 255 tonnes per hour. Moving on to a new frontier, in 1994, Asiatic had entered into a joint venture with a Sarawak state agency to establish a 30/60 tonnes per hour palm oil mill in Serian, Sarawak. This mill scored a hattrick when it was awarded the Anugerah Industri Sawit Malaysia, in recognition of its high oil extraction rate, by PORLA since its commissioning in August 1997.

Whilst plantation business remains the core activity, Asiatic has since ventured into property development with the objectives to unlock the potential of its strategically located land bank and to reduce its dependence on single source income.

The first project by Asiatic's property arm, Asiatic Land Development Sdn Bhd ("Asiatic Land") is the 55-hectare Asiatic Cheng Perdana in Central Melaka. Officially launched in October 1993, the project has turned out to be quite a success with its first phase of single- and double-storey houses completed and handed over to purchasers about 9 months ahead of schedule. Since then, 3 other phases have been completed and handed over in good time.

What followed next was the launching of the 284-hectare Asiatic Permaipura project in late 1994. Located about 10 km from the fast-growing town of Sungai Petani, Kedah, a town poised to become the commercial/industrial hub of the northern region in Malaysia, Asiatic Permaipura comprises commercial and entertainment centres, bungalow lots, residential houses and shop-offices. Also included in this project is an 18-hole golf course with a 2-tier driving range which sprawls over 160 acres of prime land against the majestic backdrop of Gunung Jerai and a clubhouse, The Permaipura Golf & Country Club.

Further, in its push to the forefront of property development, Asiatic Land had embarked on another project - the massive Asiatic Indahpura or "Beautiful City" project at Kulai, Johor. Spanning over 30 years, this project located just 30 km north from the bustling and fast growing city of Johor Bahru involves the development of about 3,200 hectares of plantation land in Kulai, Johor, into a self-contained township. Asiatic Indahpura is conceptualised as a fully-integrated development complementing the State's plan to upgrade the existing Kulai town into a sub-regional centre complete with all modern amenities and convenience, and generously landscaped town parks and green lungs for healthy and recreational pursuits. The project's attraction lies in its excellent location which enjoys easy access from virtually every transportation route - road linkages through the North-South Expressway and the Second Link from Singapore; air linkages through the Sultan Ismail International airport in Senai 10 minutes away; and rail links through the Federal Railway lines.

Asiatic also has other large tracts of land with development potential. These will continuously be monitored as to the timing and the type of development most suited in relation to their locations. With low land holding cost and huge reserves of own land bank, Asiatic can aspire to play a bigger role in the property sector in Malaysia in the near future.