Sime Darby To Invest 34 Millions Euros In Oil & Fats Business In Europe

Sime Darby has already identified various locations for palm oil processing facilities, including setting up a new refinery and bulking facilities which will complement the operations of its existing plant in Zwijndrecht.

At Unimills, the investment involves the installation of a new 10,000-tonne capacity tank yard, an innovation centre with a new laboratory and pilot plant facilities, and an enzymatic arrangement plant with a capacity of 100,000 tonnes per year. The innovation centre is one of three such facilities to be developed within the Sime Darby Group.

Sime Darby President & Group Chief Executive Dato’ Seri Ahmad Zubir Murshid said the decision was based on Unimills’ successful transformation from a commodity-based company into one focused on delivering high value tailor-made products.

“We are encouraged by the positive uptake and see an opportunity for Unimills to conduct further research to develop a more comprehensive range of such high-value niche products,” he said.

On Sime Darby’s production of sustainable palm oil, Dato’ Seri Ahmad Zubir said that the first batch of traceable palm oil originating from the Tawau Region in Sabah arrived at the Rotterdam Port on March 28 via its Kunak Bulking Installation. The traceability of this oil is being tracked by a third party assessor – the Schutter Group.

“The oil has been certified through a mass-balance claim at 70:30 by the independent assessor. The 30% is in support of the smallholders within the Kunak Region in accordance to the requirement on social obligation,” he said.

Unimills is expected to further process this first batch of sustainable palm oil and launch a new series of products to cater to its major European customers such as Nestle and Unilever.

A market and technology leader in margarine hardstocks in Europe, Unimills in 2006 collaborated with the Sime Darby R&D centre to develop enzymatically rearranged fats which were successfully tested by major customers in the European market. Market trends indicate a growing demand for this “greener” enzymatic rearranged fats compared to chemical interesterified fats.

About Sime Darby

Sime Darby is a Malaysia-based diversified multinational involved in key growth sectors ranging from power to plantations, property to utilities, and industrial equipment to motors. In addition to plantations, the Sime Darby group has downstream refineries in oils and fats and a worldwide oleochemicals business.

With a workforce of over 100,000 employees in over 20 countries, Sime Darby is committed towards building sustainable futures for all its stakeholders. A strong environmental advocate, Sime Darby subsidiaries have received various global awards including the United Nations’ Global 500 Award for the company’s “Zero Burning” policy. Sime Darby is also a member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) which in November 2005 formulated criteria for sustainable palm oil production.

For more information please visit : www.simedarby.com

About Unimills

Unimills B.V., a member of the Sime Darby group, is a leading European supplier of tailor-made vegetable oils, producing more than 450,000 tonnes of products per year from the company base in Zwijndrecht, the Netherlands. Unimills' strength is the diversity of processes for healthy oil-based ingredients, ranging from refining to double-fractionation, and from interesterification to hydrogenation of oils. Unimills sells products under key brand names including Delico ^® hardstocks for margarines and spreads, GoldBake ^® dough fats and Prifex ^® for premium flaked fats. Based on innovation and responsibility, the Unimills strategy is directed to being the preferred supplier of tailor-made healthy vegetable oils and fats and co-developer of new food products with the leading food companies.

For more information please visit : www.unimills.com