SK ecoplant acquires 30% stake in Malaysia’s Cenviro

SK ecoplant, SK Group’s engineering, and construction division, purchased a 30% stake in Cenviro, a Malaysian state-owned and operated waste management company, as part of its business strategy to expand its environmental business in the international market.

As per The Korea Herald, SK ecoplant signed a share purchase agreement on Friday, May 20, with Khazanah Nasional Berhad, a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund, to acquire 30% of Cenviro shares. It was the waste management company that built the first integrated waste management center in Malaysia in 1998.

Cenviro is currently operating the nation’s only waste landfill and incineration plant. It was reported that with the fast-growing population of Malaysia, the company was able to report $120 million in sales for last year.

Now, the Cenviro share is the latest purchase of SK ecoplant, and this move is part of its investments to speed up its bolt-on scheme and make inroads into the North American and European markets. It was noted that prior to this deal, the Korean firm also struck an agreement to buy TES – Sustainable Technology Lifecycle Solutions which is Singapore’s electronic waste management firm, in February.

Apparently, SK ecoplant has been expanding its eco-friendly biz since 2020, and in fact, it has also taken over nine environment-related enterprises in South Korea. An official at SK ecoplant stated that on the basis of this strategic partnership, the company would make Malaysia the foothold for the Southeast Asian environmental market. From here, they will be expanding the business to Indonesia and Singapore.

“Choosing SK ecoplant as a strategic partner in an open bid with participation from global firms demonstrates SK ecoplant’s competitiveness in environmental operations,” Park Kyung Il, SK ecoplant’s chief executive officer, said in a statement with regards to its deal with Khazanah Nasional for Cenviro.

The CEO added, “As Korea’s No.1 environment-related enterprise, SK ecoplant will accumulate new technology and methods of approach to export platforms and solutions that can be applied to environmental operations.”

Finally, The Malaysian Reserve reported that Khazanah Nasional said that once the share purchase deal is completed, the strategic partnership will see SK ecoplant own a 30% stake in Cenviro. On the other hand, Khazanah will continue to be a majority stakeholder of the waste management company.