KUALA LUMPUR (July 26): Here is a brief recap of some business news and corporate announcements that made the headlines on Friday:

AirAsia X Bhd (KL:AAX) will be acquiring Capital A Bhd's (KL:CAPITALA) aviation business directly, and not via a new company (NewCo) under an internal reorganisation proposed previously, to expedite the takeover. The decision to abort the proposed internal reorganisation and to terminate the internal reorganisation agreement was arrived at after weighing potential benefits of the proposed internal reorganisation against time required for the implementation of the proposed internal reorganisation and more critically, the importance of an expedient completion of the proposed acquisitions to the AAX group. — AirAsia X to take over Capital A’s aviation business directly without setting up NewCo

Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd (KL:HIBISCS) has been awarded a 65% participating interest and operatorship in a production sharing contract by Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas). Its unit Hibiscus Oil & Gas Malaysia Ltd has secured the 65% PI, while the remaining share is held by Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd. The effective date of the contract is July 1, with a contract duration of 24 years. — Hibiscus awarded 65% participating interest in PSC by Petronas

Separately, Petronas awarded Ping Petroleum Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Dagang NeXchange (KL:DNEX) and Duta Marine Sdn Bhd a small field asset (SFA) cluster PSC for the Bubu, Bunga Tasbih and Enau fields. The award is a part of the Petronas' PSC for three clusters of discovered resource opportunities under the Malaysia Bid Round Plus Round I. The awarded PSCs cover 12 oil and gas fields in the Malay basin, offering synergistic development opportunities due to their location near existing infrastructure. — Petronas awards three PSCs for discovered resource clusters, more to come

In a move to bolster Malaysia’s technology ecosystem, ViTrox Corp Bhd’s (KL:VITROX) co-founders are partnering with private equity firm Southern Capital Group to create a venture capital fund. Dubbed the Cambrian Fund, it aims to support local tech startups and nurture a robust tech ecosystem in Malaysia. The fund will focus on Industrial 4.0 themes, including vision artificial intelligence and robotics. The fund will be launched in October this year — ViTrox founders team up with Southern Capital to launch RM150 mil Cambrian Fund to boost tech ecosystem

Ekovest Bhd (KL:EKOVEST) has agreed to a further extension of time to discuss a merger between its wholly owned subsidiary Ekovest Construction Sdn Bhd (ECSB) and Knusford Bhd (KL:KNUSFOR). The six-month extension to Jan 27, 2025 will provide Ekovest and Knusford with additional time to evaluate and deliberate the terms of the definitive agreement for the proposed merger. The deadline was previously extended by two months from May 28, 2024 to from July 28, 2024. — Ekovest agrees to six-month extension for merger discussion between subsidiary and Knusford

Practice Note 17 (PN17) company Alam Maritim Resources Bhd (KL:ALAM) has announced its regularisation plan, which includes a share capital reduction of RM440 million, 10-to-one share consolidation, an issuance of renounceable rights shares with warrants and a scheme of arrangement with its creditors. The credit arising from the share capital reduction will be used to set off the company's accumulated losses amounting to RM489.81 million as at March 31, 2024. Upon completion of the proposed debt restructuring, Alam Maritim is expected to recognise a one-off net gain of RM50.63 million as a result of the waiver of debts owed to the scheme creditors. — Alam Maritim submits regularisation plan to exit PN17 status

Datasonic Group Bhd (KL:DSONIC) has secured a RM30 million contract to supply smart cards to Perum Percetakan Negara Republik Indonesia (PNRI), a unit of the Indonesian Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises. Its unit PT Datasonic Teknologi Indonesia has signed a sale and purchase agreement with PNRI to supply smart cards over a period of one to three years. — Datasonic gets RM30m contract to supply smart cards to Indonesians

Kumpulan Kitacon Bhd (KL:KITACON) has secured a RM54.5 million contract to undertake the construction of 186 terrace houses in Rawang, Selangor. The contract to build the houses in Bandar Tasik Puteri was awarded to its subsidiary Kitacon Sdn Bhd by Rawang Lakes Sdn Bhd. The contract will commence on Aug 1 and be completed within 20 months. — Kumpulan Kitacon bags RM54.5m job to build houses in Rawang

Health and wellness direct selling company DXN Holdings Bhd’s (KL:DXN) net profit for the first quarter ended May 31, 2024 rose 10.26% to RM85.56 million or earnings per share of 1.72 sen, compared with RM77.60 million or 1.60 sen per share over the same period last year. Revenue climbed 12.05% year-on-year to RM475.05 million from RM423.98 million, on the organic expansion in key markets including Peru, Bolivia, Mexico and India that continued to be the primary growth driver. DXN declared a first interim dividend of 0.9 sen per share, totalling RM44.8 million. — DXN Holdings 1Q net profit up 10.26%, targets market presence in Zambia, Ghana

Upholstery furniture products manufacturer Homeritz Corp Bhd’s (KL:HOMERIZ) net profit for the third quarter ended May 31, 2024 surged 46.37% to RM9.09 million or earnings per share of 1.96 sen, from RM6.21 million or 1.34 sen per share a year earlier, thanks to higher sales volume and the stronger US dollar. Revenue rose 63.34% to RM61.88 million from RM37.88 million. Homeritz did not declare any dividend for the quarter. — Homeritz’s 3Q net profit soars 46.37% on higher sales and strong greenback    

Westports Holdings Bhd’s (KL:WPRTS) net profit for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024 (2QFY2024) rose 4.61% to RM203.75 million, from RM194.76 million a year ago, due to lower operating expenses. Revenue inched up 1.9% to RM552.99 million from RM542.64 million, attributed to an increase in container revenue. The port operator declared its first interim dividend of 8.89 sen per share, to be paid on Aug 21. — Westports’ 2Q net profit up 5%, declares 8.89 sen dividend 

Biopharmaceutical company Malaysian Genomics Resource Centre Bhd (KL:MGRC) has proposed to undertake a private placement that is expected to raise up to RM4.98 million. For illustrative purposes, based on the five-day volume-weighted average market price of MGRC shares up to July 12 of 40.3 sen per share, the issue price of placement shares shall be at an issue price of 36.3 sen per placement share. — MGRC plans private placement to raise up to RM4.98 mil