The Star Online. Malaysia
Monday February 11, 2008
IJM Plantations to go big in Indonesia
THE CEO INTERVIEW By HANIM ADNAN
It plans to invest RM600mil to develop newly acquired land in East Kalimantan
IJM Plantations Bhd (IJMP) has transformed into one of the fastest growing oil palm plantation companies in Malaysia with strategic oil palm-related investments in Indonesia and India.
Within a short span of two years, the group doubled its plantation hectarage to about 60,000ha and will be on the lookout for suitable land bank for oil palm cultivation, particularly in Indonesia.
IJMP is also embarking on the oil palm upstream and downstream operations with the Godrej Group in India.
Managing director and chief executive officer Velayuthan Tan told StarBiz that IJMP's immediate focus would be to develop its newly acquired 30,000ha of land in East Kalimantan with high-yield oil palm trees.
While the group is busy scouting for more land in the vicinity, he said: “We plan to invest about RM600mil within the next five years to develop the existing areas (in Indonesia) inclusive of processing facilities.”
Between Nov 2006 and June 2007, IJMP acquired three companies in East Kalimantan with a combined area of 32,634ha.
Tan said: “The acquisition of these companies is part of our long-term strategy to expand the operations in Indonesia.
“The identified sites are strategically located and fit the group's plan of enhancing its existing infrastructure in Sabah.” Currently, of IJMP's total land bank, about 27,000ha are planted.
Tan said the group's investment in Indonesia was significant as “it represents our move to continue maintaining fresh fruit bunches (FFB) production growth in IJMP through the doubling of hectarage in Indonesia.”
He said East Kalimantan was located near Sabah and has large tracts of land suitable for oil palm cultivation.
As for IJMP's foray into India, Tan said the strategic alliance between IJMP and Godrej involves the cultivation of oil palms and processing of palm oil in the states of Karnataka and Goa.
“We believe our upstream experience in plantation management can synergise with the downstream strengths of Godrej Group in India,” he added. Godrej is a well-known household brand in India.
Tan said the alliance between both parties would offer IJMP with an entry point into the lucrative palm oil trade and consumption market in the highly populated continent.
He noted that IJMP's current focus would be to smoothen the progress of cultivation of oil palms in the two states in India.
“We will subsequently set up palm oil milling facilities there to buy back and processing the FFB,” he said.
On the progress of IJMP's biodiesel plant in Sabah, Tan said: “We are in the process of setting up the first module of 30,000 tonnes per annum capacity in Sandakan.”
Despite the feedstock (CPO) for biodiesel production had risen to above RM3,000 per tonne, Tan said: “The macro scenario for biofuel is obvious as its medium- to long-term prospects continue to remain sound and intact.”
He said the demand for more environment friendly fuel, diminishing supply of fossil fuel and the projected increase in global consumption of fuel in the transportation sector were factors that will continue to sustain the development of the biofuel industry.
Furthermore, the prices of biodiesel have not moved in tandem with the feedstock prices because of the relatively young and immature trade.
Against such backdrop, Tan said IJMP's entry into biodiesel production was part of the group's business plan, which incorporates integration between both upstream and downstream activities. “Our outlook is towards a long-term business undertaking,” he added.
On the CPO outlook, he said the current bullish prices were due to lower supply of global vegetable oil and continued strong demand from consuming countries.
He said biofuel demand in the European Union and the US continued to support the bullish CPO prices against the backdrop of higher crude oil prices.
Tan stressed that the increasing global palm oil production would help the current debate on the use of vegetable oils as food versus fuel.
Abuse and humiliation of orangutans stopped?
Good news. From March 29 2010 the use of orangutans in circus-like shows in Malaysia has been officially banned. Let us know at once if you see anyone breaking this law....this animal park was caught doing so by Nature Alert.
SHAME ON MALAYSIA
The government owned Melaka Zoo forces this orangutan to take part in degrading and inhumane shows. Note the lack of hair on this orangutan's arms and lower body.
Nine years secured to a three metre chain. Imagine if you will.
"Mely" enjoying fruit supplied by COP and Nature Alert.
Waiting to be rescued
Under lock and chain for at least nine years.
How governments do deals which wreck environments, people and countries
Highly Recommended reading and available from Amazon
Chained up day and night.
But confiscated and rescued by COP in January 2010.
COP to the rescue
The final moments before being released forever from the heavy chain around its neck.
A helping hand
After maybe nine years of being confined to a wooden crate this orangutan is now on the way to a rescue centre and one day back to the forest.
Highly Recommended Book
Available from Amazon and by far the best book ever written on orangutan conservation.
Another palm oil victim - one of tens of thousands - so far.
For a close up of this brutally treated orangutan, please see below.
Mother shot and eaten. Baby beaten and tied to a pole.
The plight of a baby orangutan rescued from a palm oil plantation workers in Borneo has exposed the high price these endangered primates are paying for the production of palm oil. The 2-3 year old female was found hogtied to a pole and had clearly been brutally beaten. Covered in cuts and bruises, she was also severely dehydrated and emaciated after being starved for days or even weeks.
Palm oil kills - no doubt about it.
Villagers protest against palm oil companies.
Tropical forest, home to orangutans etc.
Threatened by palm oil companies.
Saved by COP
Mother murdered by palm oil company
Tortured by palm oil company employees
Rescued and treated by COP, this orangutan has since been released back into a forest.
Palm oil plantation victim
Orphaned by a palm oil company with help from the government of Indonesia.
Indonesia's Alcatraz for orangutans
A living hell for this orangutan.
Guilty of being an orangutan
A prisoner held by the Indonesian government
Shame on the Ministry of Forestry
A life behind bars. Why?
Day after day, 24/7 ..........
A magnificent male orangutan facing life imprisonment behind bars.
Kept prisoner in filth and squalor
Things just go from bad to worse
Solitary confinement .
There can be no excuse for treating an orangutan like this.
Welcome to Indonesia
Where orangutans are incarcerated by the government.
No hope?
Has this orangutan lost the will to live?
Shame on Minister Kaban
Young orangutan in a 1.5 sq. metre cage 24 hours a day and tormented by zoo visitors.
What future do you think this orangutan has?
How much longer can the Indonesian government carry on abusing and killing orangutans?
Born in the wild.
Life behind bars - where the government of Indonesia prefers to see its orangutans.
Dying for help
With their mothers slaughtered these baby orangutans face a life of torment, torture and hunger, thanks to the government of Indonesia.
Torture chambers for orangutans at an Indonesian zoo
These orangutans have been kept like this for nine months. Until Nature Alert and COP protested the cages were left outside in all weathers.
Solitary confinement courtesy of Indonesian zoo
Caged like this 24/7 for nine months, with no end in sight.
Formerly home to orangutans and other wildlife.
Part of the price we all pay for palm oil.
Can you see the rainforest?
No? That's the way the palm oil companies like to see things.
Begging for food - not for fun.
Reduced to begging for food, this orangutan (one of two) is in a unofficial zoo in West Kalimantan. Their enclosure has nothing but bare earth, no protection from a blisteringly hot sun, a concrete tube to shelter/sleep in and no fresh water to drink.
Bored and hungry - for as long as this orangutans lives
Born to be free. Imprisioned for life.
The COP Rapid Response Team
Their arrival in a remote village often generates a lot of interest. Please see July 2008 Blog page for more details..
Saved by COP
Please see July 2008 Blog page for more details.
Mother killed and her baby tied up like this for six months.
We found her at the home of a family who had bought her from her mothers killer. Please see photo immediately below - she is now safe, rescued by COP with the local Forestry Police.
Safe and sound - now
Saved by The Centre for Orangutan Protection and its sponsors/supporters.
Another palm oil victim
Rescued by COP and The Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation
With its mother killed this orangutan's new owner keeps it chained up.
A baby orangutan with nowhere to go. A mother's love replaced with a chain.
How very, very sad.
What hope is there for this orangutan?
In this small crate there really is an orangutan.
Torture takes many different forms when it comes to dealing with orangutans.
Alone and abused.
Yes. There is an orangutan in this cage.
Chained to, rather than living in a tree.
There's no escape.
At a West Borneo amusement park.
Look at the rubbish this orangutan has to live with.
Escape is not an option.
same as picture below.
Yet another victim of logging and/or palm oil.
Alone, malnourished and very sad in a transit centre.
Palm oil companies take everything.
Imagine; this was once a rainforest.
Life imprisonment
Five adult orangutans are crammed into this dark, featureless cage in a zoo. All five began life in the wild.
Orphaned by loggers or palm oil companies - often the same thing.
Missing its mother. Look at her eyes and you have to wonder what she is thinking don't you? STOP PRESS this baby has since died.
A little light refreshment goes a long way.
Water melon was always a firm favourite of the orangutans. In all the differnt locations we never once saw fresh drinking water provided.
A Tasty treat
Everywhere we went we took lots of different fresh fruit to give to the hungry orangutans we always discovered in various locations.
Same location as above.
We provided food and some small branches, and they loved both.
Again, the same location
We hope we made him a little happier than he appears. The lives of these two orangutans must be almost unbearable. We hope to arrange their transfer to a rescue centre soon.
West Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo)
Two young orangutans kept at an amusement park. They were wild born. Mothers killed by loggers.
Rescued last year and now at a rehab. centre with an uncertain future.
This baby saw her mother being killed and eaten.
Lawbreakers
Illegal loggers
The torture of orangutans is seemingly never ending.
With its left arm chained and padlocked to its neck, this orangutan is literally being tortured at an amusement park in West Kalimantan (Borneo)
Awaiting rescue from what was once its home.
With nowhere left to run, this tranquillized orangutan was rescued and moved to another forest.
Apocalypse now - Indonesian style with help from Malaysian companies.
Rescuers looking for orangutans made homeless by a palm oil company. Virgin rainforest recently stood where there is nothing but a few small trees remaining, which by now will also have been cleared away. Nov. 2007
Yet another palm oil victim
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With its mother killed, this baby with an injured eye was caged by workers until rescued by WWF Indonesia.
Illegal loggers in action. October 2007
Access to log these trees illegally was gained via a palm oil plantation road. This forest is home to 50 orangutans and palm oil companies want to log it.
The road to ruin - Indonesia style.
Where once stood a magnificent rainforest full of wildlife.
Mother and baby orangutan.
Oil palm companies have killed thousands like these two.
Palm oil victim. Mother killed.
This baby will have seen its mother slain.
Nothing, absolutely nothing, left of the forest, except for its soil.
It's all about money, greed and corruption.
Destruction and desolation as far as the eye can see
So much for Borneo's rainforests - look what palm oil companies have done to them.
They can barely cut down and remove the trees quick enough for their liking.
Palm oil companies destroy rainforests.
Freshly cut trees
These trees could end up as garden furniture in your local store.
Not a tree in sight - courtesy of oil palm companies.
Oil palm plants growing where rainforest once stood.