Ahn advantage for Ramunia
The Star
19 October 2005

RAMUNIA Holdings Bhd, which recently welcomed Dr Daniel C.S. Ahn to the group, hopes to leverage on the executive director's international connections, knowledge and experience in the oil and gas industry to elevate the company to a global oil and gas concern.

Plans are under way to expand Ramunia's core business in the fabrication of offshore oil and gas related structures for major oil players in the Middle East, particularly in Qatar, India, China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, Dr Ahn told StarBiz in an interview in Petaling Jaya yesterday.

Dr Ahn said his experience with the Hyundai Heavy Industries Co Ltd and negotiation skills would be useful in establishing Ramunia as an international player.

“My responsibility is to build up the international client base for Ramunia, but as in any business, you have to build up the company step by step. We will start with fabrication work or the steel structure known as 'jackets' for oil and gas platforms.

“We will move on to more complicated modules in the oil and gas industry, including the construction of machinery and pipelines in the later stage,” he said.

Dr Ahn, who received his PhD in Ocean Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and completed the Advanced Management Program (AMP) at Harvard Business School, said the group would be able to undertake the more complex turnkey contracts for the oil and gas industry.

Asked why he took up the job offer in Ramunia upon his retirement from Hyundai Heavy Industries, Dr Ahn said: “I take it as a challenge to build up Ramunia. Although I had some offers from oil and gas companies in China and India, Ramunia is a different story.

“It started out as an offshore engineering company and I feel that I can contribute and make it a force to be reckoned with, given my experience and technological know-how.”

Ramunia is actively tendering for projects overseas and Dr Ahn said the group should be able to take on projects worth US$1bil in three years.

The founder of the offshore and engineering division of Hyundai Heavy Industries has been appointed chief executive officer of Ramunia International Holdings Ltd, the international unit of Ramunia. He was appointed executive director of Ramunia in July.

On the prospects of the oil and gas industry, Dr Ahn said demand for oil and gas would continue to rise in tandem with the growing population, especially in India and China.

However, many oil and gas companies would need to find oil and gas in increasingly deeper waters, he said.

“Many of the oil platforms in the world are already more than 30 years old and they needed to be revamped or modified and this is where Ramunia can provide the expertise,” he said.

In another development, sources said Ramunia was in an advanced stage of negotiations to tie up with a foreign oil and gas partner. The company is expected to announce the identity of the foreign partner soon.

Ramunia is expected to complement the foreign partner's ongoing projects in the oil and gas industry.

The sources also said Ramunia was on track to post the RM17mil net profit target for the year ending Oct 31, as stated in its prospectus.

Ramunia is principally engaged in the business of fabrication of offshore oil and gas related structures for major oil players in the region. The group's business operation is located at Teluk Ramunia Yard in Johor.