Borneo Oil Berhad (BornOil) has announced a sterling set of results for its fourth quarter ended 30 June 2021, with profit before tax soaring more than 11 folds to RM35.41 million from the previous corresponding period (2020: RM3.18 million). This was on the back of revenue of RM15.82 million (2020: RM16.16 million) for the quarter.
This resulted in the BornOil posting group profit before tax of RM28.46 million for the financial year (2020: RM4.06 million), translating to earnings per share of 0.42 sen (2020: 0.03 sen).
BornOil attributed the leap in profits due to the fair value gain on investment in quoted securities of RM26.46 million, reversal of impairment loss of RM18.63 million and disposal of business assets of RM1.91 million.
A breakdown of BornOil’s various divisions are as follows:
- The Head Office and Others recorded profit before tax of RM25.11 million against a loss before tax of RM0.99 million mainly due to the fair value gain on quoted securities of RM26.46 million for the quarter under review.
- The Food and Franchise Operations recorded a revenue of RM9.85 million and a loss before tax of RM0.96 million for the current quarter against the revenue of RM7.37 million and a loss before tax of RM0.03 million for the corresponding quarter. The lower reported revenue for the corresponding quarter was due to MCO 1.0 and CMCO, which lasted until 9 June 2020. During the quarter under review, a total of RM1.08 million of slow-moving equipment were impaired due to the slowdown in outlets opening.
- The Property Investment & Management registered a revenue of RM5.36 million and a loss before tax RM5.71 million for the current quarter compared to a revenue of RM5.38 million and a profit before tax of RM3.61 million for the corresponding quarter. The loss before tax for the current quarter was mainly due to fair value adjustments on investment properties of RM1.95 million compared to a fair value gain of RM2.98 million for the corresponding quarter.
- The Resources & Sustainable Energy (“RSE”) reported a revenue of RM0.60 million and a profit before tax of RM16.98 million for the current quarter against the revenue of RM3.40 million and a profit before tax of RM0.59 million for the corresponding quarter. The reduction in revenue of RM2.80 million was mainly due to a decrease in the sale of limestones and marble tribute received from the operator during the quarter under review. The profit before tax of RM16.98 million for the current quarter was mainly due to the gain of RM20.54 million on reversal of impairment loss and disposal of business assets.
BornOil’s various divisions are involved in ‘essential and fundamental’ businesses. Its food franchise under the ‘Sugarbun’ brand continues to grow strongly, while gold mining and trading are real and perpetual value in nature.
Meanwhile, BornOil is also aspiring to be a global player in the conversion of palm oil biomass, to biochar, biogas and biofuel. Earlier in May, BizVantage had reported that BornOil has entered into a collaboration with Nevada-based Verde Resources on catalytic biofraction green technology initiatives. This collaboration enables the group to penetrate the US market where global investors have been demanding for socially and environmentally conscious options and stocks related to green sustainable products.
“In recent times, this trend had been growing at a rapid pace, further enhanced by the new US administration and its commitment towards the climate agenda as laid out in the Paris Climate Agreement in which President Biden emphasised during the recent Virtual Climate Summit,” said BornOil executive director Raymond Teo (left in pic). Under the Biden Administration, the proposal of a US$2.25 trillion infrastructure plan will focus on green energy and decarbonisation.
Verde president Balakrishnan Muthu (right in pic) said that palm oil biomass waste could be monetised with the right processes and technologies: “This technology can convert widely available oil palm biomass into by-products such as biochar which is now proven to be an effective way to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. Agencies such as NASA are conducting experiments with biochar to grow food on Mars as biochar is widely recognised as a viable soil enhancer able to recondition highly degraded soil or waste land. Even Tesla’s Elon Musk announced a US$100 million reward for the best carbon sequestration technology.”
BornOil’s other core business are limestone – it is the main and monopolistic supplier of limestone to the cement industry in Sabah and the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia–Malaysia–Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area) – while the group is also sitting on some of the most strategic spots in Sabah with tremendous potential for lifestyle living and tourism.
BornOil’s ‘culture of innovation’ also resulted in the group launching the extremely popular Sabasco sauce in recent weeks. Its devout following include former Deputy Minister of Women, Family and Community Development and Member of Parliament for Segambut YB Hannah Yeoh and Malaysian professional golfer Kelly Tan.
Sabasco was introduced to bring a unique taste of Sabah for the whole of Malaysia – and the world eventually – to enjoy.
BornOil Executive Director Joseph Ambrose Lee said that, in Sabah, the Momporok chilli sauce is always placed at the centre of the table in every coffeeshop. “What’s special about the Sabasco version of Sabah’s beloved Momporok chilli sauce, however, is its origins.”
A town on the East Coast of Sabah, Kunak, has a geographical makeup of volcanic soils rich in nutrients and the resident ‘bulbul’ birds. The chilli thrives in Kunak, and its aroma and spice are intensely concentrated and distinctive. Over the decades, this breed of Momporok chilli in Kunak has been cultivated by local micro-farmers who stick to growing only this breed.
“Sabasco is grown, nurtured, harvested, prepared, and bottled locally,” said Datuk Ambrose. “This is a chilli sauce close to our hearts. This is the chilli we grew up eating. This is the chilli for our homes, our friends, and family. And now, we’re bringing it to the rest of Malaysia – and the world.”
Given BornOil’s unique ‘culture of innovation’ and its core businesses starting to fire again on all cylinders, the group can only grow from strength to strength.