ASL Marines' unit wins lucrative deal

ASL Marines' unit wins lucrative deal

SINGAPORE: A joint venture unit of ASL Marine Holdings has won a US$73 million contract to transport coal for an Indonesian company, marking the Singapore group's foray into the energy sector, officials said on Tuesday.

Its 50 percent-owned associate ASL Energy will provide 20 sets of tugs and barges to carry coal for Pelayaran Segara Niaga Utama for five years.

ASL Energy has separately awarded a contract to ASL Shipyard to build 20 barges under the deal announced on Monday.

They will be delivered between December this year and November 2004.

"We expect both the shipbuilding and ship chartering contracts to have a positive impact on earnings per share for the current financial year ending June 30, 2004," The Straits Times quoted ASL Marine chairman Ang Kok Tian as saying.

The share price of ASL Marine Holdings has more than doubled since listing in March. -- DPA