KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 4): Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) will independently evaluate Sunway Bhd’s proposed voluntary general offer (VGO) for IJM Corporation Bhd by weighing commercial fundamentals, governance considerations, potential risks and Sunway’s long-term strategic direction following the acquisition.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Energy Transition and Water Transformation Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said the offer was extended on equal terms to all IJM shareholders and was not the result of negotiations with any single party, including PNB.
“As a shareholder of IJM, PNB is simply a recipient of the offer, on the same footing as other shareholders. Any assessment will only take place once the official offer document is issued,” he said during his winding-up speech on the motion of thanks for the royal address in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday.
Fadillah explained that PNB’s review will focus on several core factors, including the offer price relative to IJM’s intrinsic value, expected investment returns, governance standards, offer-related risks and Sunway’s post-acquisition strategy.
Any decision to accept or reject the offer, he said, would be subject to PNB’s internal governance framework and approval processes, ensuring that the interests of unitholders remain protected.
He was responding to a question from Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal (Perikatan Nasional–Machang) regarding the implications of Sunway’s proposed takeover of IJM.
On Jan 12, Sunway announced a conditional voluntary takeover offer to acquire all 3.51 billion IJM shares at an offer price of RM3.15 per share, valuing the transaction at approximately RM11 billion. The consideration would be settled through a combination of cash and the issuance of new Sunway shares.
Fadillah noted that the offer would only succeed if more than 50% of IJM shareholders accept it. As PNB holds less than 13.5% of IJM’s shares, it does not have the ability to determine the outcome of the offer on its own.
“This reflects standard capital market practice, where each shareholder independently evaluates a general offer based on their own investment objectives,” he said.
Market observers note that IJM plays a significant role in Malaysia’s construction, infrastructure and property development landscape, with projects spanning commercial property in KL, industrial developments and infrastructure-linked assets across Selangor.
Any change in IJM’s ownership could have downstream implications for related sectors, including industrial land in Selangor, logistics facilities, and supporting office space in growth areas such as Subang and Bukit Jalil, where infrastructure-led development continues to attract investor interest.
Malaysia