THE Selangor government is paying RM2.55 billion to take over Syarikat Pengeluar Air Selangor (Splash) under a plan to restructure the state’s water assets.

Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari said the price was a 28% reduction from Splash’s net book value. 

“The takeover value of Splash is RM2.55billion, which is equivalent to a 28% discount on the net book value of RM3.54 billion,” he said, after witnessing the handover of the letter of offer.

The Splash acquisition is the final step of the state government’s water assets restructuring exercise that has seen it take over Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd, Puncak Niaga Sdn Bhd and Konsortium Abass Sdn Bhd. 

Air Selangor chief executive officer Suhaimi Kamarulzaman said the deal was expected to be finalised in six weeks.

“This is the letter of offer, more details will be worked out in the next month or so, terms of payment and all that,” he said.

Amirudin said the payment would be made over a period of nine years, but declined to say if the federal government was involved.

“We have a timeframe of nine years but the quantum we can’t disclose now. There needs to be certain approval, the method, from the federal government we cannot disclose now,” he said. 

Selangor will pay RM1.9 billion upfront and the balance of RM650 million in stages over a period of nine years. 

Amirudin said the funds would not come from Selangor’s budget. 

Splash chairman Wan Azmi Wan Hamzah said the 28% discount was given to the state in the “spirit of the times”. 

Former prime minister Najib Razak had previously accused the Selangor government of colluding with Splash to purchase the water company for RM2.7 billion, with a top management official who has a 30% stake in Splash to benefit handsomely from the deal.

Singapore Straits Times had reported that Putrajaya and Selangor had struck a joint funding deal for the buyout, with the federal government to make the upfront payment and the state government to fork out between RM600 million and RM800 million. 

Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Dr Xavier Jayakumar denied the report suggesting the federal government was paying RM1.9 billion for Splash. – August 3, 2018.