MALAYSIA'S WESTSTAR ACQUIRES BRITISH VAN MAKER

By Azman Ujang

KUALA LUMPUR, May 7 (Bernama) -- Weststar Group, Malaysia's vehicle
importer, has finalised a deal to buy LDV, the British van maker based in
Birmingham which is controlled by GAZ and owned by Russian oligarch Oleg
Deripaska.

Weststar Group Managing Director Syed Azman Syed Ibrahim, said in
a statement from London to Bernama Wednesday, that a four-week bridging loan of
£5 million is being provided by the British government to keep LDV afloat while
Weststar completes the deal.

LDV Group Ltd., formerly a part of the British Leyland, was incorporated in
1993 and is an integrated commercial van manufacturing company, located in
Birmingham, England.

Turnover for the year ended 31st December 2007 was £146.8 million (RM1.1
billion).

LDV's Maxus van was launched in 2005 and has since then received much praise
and awards.

Syed Azman said in conjunction with Microvett of Italy, LDV had developed a
zero-emission all electric van, which had been trialed and well received by
Sainsbury, a high-profile user.

He said the vehicle is being readied for series production. LDV has been
shortlisted for the Low Carbon Vehicle Public Procurement Programme, which if
successful in the initial phase, will lead to supply to a wide range of public
sector organisations.

Weststar estimates that a substantial investment is required to fully
exploit the abundant opportunities for European heavy vans worldwide.

"This marketability is evidenced in Malaysia by its rapid acceptance as an
ambulance and mini-bus only one year after its introduction," he said.

In Malaysia, LDV Maxus vans are manufactured at the Pekan facility of DRB
Hicom.

Syed Azman said the products were eligible for AFTA status, and were being
progressively type certified in South East Asian countries and Saudi Arabia.

Weststar has already begun exporting LDV vans to Brunei and Thailand, and
intends to market this product aggressively internationally, he said.

He disclosed that on May 4, GAZ Group of the Russian Federation offered
Weststar Group the opportunity to purchase the entire shareholding in LDV Group
and its associate company, Birmingham Pressings Ltd, which supplies metal parts
for its products.

"This investment opportunity was brought about by the economic turmoil in
Russia, and brings into Malaysian hands ownership of an international brand,
first rate products and access to European markets and technology at an
affordable price," Syed Azman said.

For the future, Weststar intends to utilise the Birmingham facilities to its
fullest extent, at the highest standards of labour and energy efficiency in the
industry.

He said serving UK and European markets, the plant and distribution network
would offer products and ownership experience comparable to the best.

The UK plant is entitled to tap on £2.5 billion financial incentives pledged
by the British Government under its Automotive Assistance Programme, and
European Investment Bank's European Clean Transport Facilities which grants
loans of a minimum of approximately ?50 million to a maximum of ?400 million for
eligible low carbon projects.

Meanwhile, to make LDV products more affordable in the developing world,
Weststar would expand the scope of manufacture in Malaysia and other low cost
manufacturing centres in regional trade blocs.

" Birmingham shall remain the centre of engineering excellence where designs
of new low carbon footprint products and OEM standard SVO conversions shall
originate, and jointly put into production with the Malaysian plant.
Successfully implemented, this strategy will see employment and value creation
in the UK and Malaysia significantly increased," Syed Azman said.

-- BERNAMA