KUALA LUMPUR, May 5 — Westports Holdings Bhd (Westports) distributed a total dividend amounting to RM443.3 million or 13 sen per share for financial year 2019 (FY2019).

In a statement today, the company said the dividend is in line with its dividend payout practice of 75 per cent on the net profit attained, and since Westports’ initial public offering in 2013 it has distributed a total dividend of RM2.75 billion to shareholders.

In addition, it said in its Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM), the company’s shareholders approved the proposed acquisition of 144.72 hectares of land adjacent to Container Terminal 9 (CT9) that will enable Westports to undertake significant expansion from CT10 to CT17.

"The proposed land acquisition would only be completed after the company has fulfilled all the conditions precedent in the Sale and Purchase Agreement, including securing a concession agreement from the government.

"The container terminal expansion will cost more than RM10 billion over a period of around 30 years, and it would double container terminal handling to 28 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) per annum,” it said.

The statement said Westports handled a record 10.9 million TEUs in 2019, which translates to a growth rate of 14 per cent over the previous year’s volume of 9.5 million TEUs.

The volume achieved showcases Westports as the first and only port in Malaysia that has handled more than 10 million TEUs of container throughput in a year.

Meanwhile, during FY2019, Westports achieved a record-breaking productivity level by moving 801 containers in one hour with 12 Ship-To-Shore Cranes on CMA CGM Jean Mermoz, an Ultra-Large Container Vessel that can accommodate 20,600 TEUs.

It said the achievement is a reflection of Westports staff’s dedication and teamwork, client-focused emphasis and the company’s excellent terminal facilities. — Bernama