KUCHING: Since its establishment in 2000, OCK Group has grown into one of Malaysia’s leading telecommunication network service providers covering over 90 per cent of Malaysia’s major telecommunications network providers.
The company has built itself a strong and extensive portfolio of clients and business partners such as Maxis, Celcom, DiGi, U Mobile, Huawei, YTL Communications, amongst others.
As such, its listing on the ACE market of Bursa Malaysia will help the group expand and achieve its objective to upgrade its status, revealed OCK Group managing director, Sam Ooi.
In an interview with Borneo Post, Ooi stated that OCK Group’s plans to go regional required a large amount of capital to support it, hence the need to list.
“Being listed will also enable the company to gain access to capital market to raise funds for future expansion when required,” he added.
The group’s initial public offering (IPO) structure comprise 259 million OCK shares on the Ace Market, The public issue offering of 75 million OCK new shares.
Ooi revealed that 37 per cent of the IPO proceeds would be utilised for capital expenditure, 36 per cent for operational expenditure, 20 per cent for working capital and remaining for the listing expenses.
As a company principally involved in the provision of telecommunication network services, the managing director believed OCK Group would gain as the outlook for telecommunications network services in Malaysia remains in positive light.
The estimated market size of RM5.8 billion in 2011 is projected to grow to RM6.7 billion in 2016, he noted.
“Accordingly, Malaysia’s information and communications technology (ICT) industry is expected to grow due to the intention to raise the nation’s overall productivity and competitiveness,” he opined.
“The Malaysian government expects the industry to contribute 10.2 per cent of the nation’s gross domestic product by 2015. In other words, any growth in the ICT industry will spill positive growth to the telecommunication network services market.”
The telecommunication industry is on a continuous growing trend where upgrades and demands from the market is forever changing and increasing, he noted.
During the last quarter of 2011, OCK Group procured the Network Facility Provider (NFP) licence which gave it a distinct advantage in this industry compared to other players.
“This NFP license allows us to build, own and rent out telecommunication towers and rooftop structures,” Ooi said. “This license provides additional service offerings to our current service portfolio which in turn will contribute positively to the company’s long-term recurring income.
“With an NFP license it also provides the company an option to consider buying existing telecommunications towers from local telecommunication operators and renting them back out to them.”
In retrospect, the group’s financial performance has been seeing an upward trend over the last three years, with an increased growth of 32.3 per cent in its revenue for the financial year 2011 (FY2011) of RM88.3 million from FY2010 of RM66.8 million.
Moving forward, Ooi highlighted OCK Group’s intentions to grow its team of expertise in order to strengthen its competitive edge in the industry and in staying ahead its competitors.
“With our intension in regional expansion we have commenced project trials in Vietnam testing services for 3G cellular networks whereby reports of the project trials have already been submitted to a telecommunications operator in Vietnam for their consideration.
“We plan on venturing into emerging markets like the Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Indonesia, where the potential for telecommunications network deployment remains strong,” he added.
“Additionally, we are working towards in strengthening our position towards to become a Regional Telecommunication Network Service Provider and become a Local Telecommunications Infrastructure Owner,” he concluded.