[saraprobe]

MTD Group Malaysia, a construction company, has entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Government of Sri Lanka to build a 100 kilometre, four lane highway, linking Kalagedihena with Kandy.

MDT Group Managing Director Dato Azmil Khalid (47) who described the project as an alternate Colombo-Kandy Highway told reporters on Monday that they submitted several proposals to the government in regard to this project, including a proposal that this be operated as a tollway.

He told The Morning Leader that this was a government to government project with the Malaysian government having had selected MDT to execute the job.

The company has already completed the engineering and design works in regard to this project. MDT Group has also submitted a bid to build the over 20 km. long Colombo-Katunayake Expressway (CKE).

"The potential for infrastructure works in Sri Lanka is enormous," said Khalid, adding that the Group's work portfolio includes building roads, bridges, houses and apartment complexes, and power projects.

The Group through its subsidiary MDT Capital Bhd bought a 90.4% stake in Kapila Heavy Equipments PLC, an engineering firm for Rs. 138 million recently. A resolution was passed at Kapila's AGM which was also held on Monday to change its name to MDT Walkers Investments PLC.

MTD Walkers have submitted bids to build a 30 storey headquarters building for Dialog Telekom, another Malaysian company, at Uni-on Place, Colombo. MDT Walkers was also the sole bidder for 140 perches of government land in Kotte to be taken on a 30 year lease. These bids are currently under evaluation

Another of MDT's investments was buying a 40% stake in CML Edwards, a construction company. The name of this private company has since been changed to MDT CML Construction company.

The assets owned by MDT Walkers include 40 perches of land at St. Michael's Polwatte valued at Rs. six million a perch, a tea machinery repair complex inclusive of a manager's bungalow on an acre of land at Bandarawela valued at Rs. 10 million and a machinery manufacturing complex at Siyambalape, Biyagama.

One of MTD Walkers' subsidiaries which is into the manufacture of tea rollers, claims to have a 75% market share of this business locally. In addition it exports this machinery to India and Africa. It also recently introduced to the local market a fully automated tea roller.

These subsidiaries have also supplied machinery worth Rs. 250 million to Holcim Cement in the past seven years and is in the process of supplying sugar rollers to the Sevanagala Sugar Factory, a company spokesman told reporters.


TML