KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Bhd is set to proceed with its lawsuits against its former executives without the additional third party suits that were filed subsequently.
In a statement to Bursa Malaysia yesterday, Sime Darby said the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Tuesday struck out third party suits brought by former president and CEO Datuk Seri Ahmad Zubir Murshid.
To recap, Sime Darby and its units filed two civil suits against Ahmad Zubir and several other defendants last December in relation to the group’s Bakun Dam project and for its oil and gas (O&G) projects.
Sime Darby is seeking RM92.2 million from the defendants in the Bakun suit and another RM338 million from the defendants in the O&G suit.
In March, Ahmad Zubir filed third-party notices for both civil suits taken against him, seeking indemnity and contribution from Sime Darby directors should he be found liable.
The 17 Sime Darby directors named in the third party suits later asked the court to strike out the application, which the court did on Dec 13.
In the same statement, Sime also announced that the court had struck out the third party application filed earlier by former executive vice-president of Sime Darby’s energy and utilities (E&U) division Datuk Mohamad Shukri Baharom. Mohamad Shukri was named as a defendant in Sime Darby’s two legal claims alongside Ahmad Zubir.
“The High Court has allowed the applications by all 12 individuals in the O&G Suit and 11 individuals, Sime Engineering Sdn Bhd and Sime Darby Holdings Bhd in the Bakun suit and struck out Mohamad Shukri’s third party statement of claim, set aside the third party notices and dismissed the third party proceedings on the basis, among others, that the second defendant’s third party proceedings were frivolous and vexatious,” said the statement.
The High Court has scheduled Jan 19, 2012 for case management of the O&G suit and the Bakun suit.
It has been a year since Sime Darby filed suit against its executives after it revealed that three projects under its E&U division had suffered massive cost overruns.
The three projects are the Qatar Petroleum project, the Maersk Oil Qatar project and the project Marine, which relates to the construction of marine vessels.
After the massive cost overruns were revealed, Ahmad Zubir was asked to take a leave of absence ahead of the expiry of his contract on Nov 26.
Sime Darby appointed Zaid Ibrahim & Co to conduct a legal investigation into the losses suffered by the company in the projects under the E&U division.
The authorities, including the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and the Securities Commission, also conducted investigations into possible breaches of law relating to the three projects.
This article appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, December 16, 2011.
In a statement to Bursa Malaysia yesterday, Sime Darby said the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Tuesday struck out third party suits brought by former president and CEO Datuk Seri Ahmad Zubir Murshid.
To recap, Sime Darby and its units filed two civil suits against Ahmad Zubir and several other defendants last December in relation to the group’s Bakun Dam project and for its oil and gas (O&G) projects.
Sime Darby is seeking RM92.2 million from the defendants in the Bakun suit and another RM338 million from the defendants in the O&G suit.
In March, Ahmad Zubir filed third-party notices for both civil suits taken against him, seeking indemnity and contribution from Sime Darby directors should he be found liable.
The 17 Sime Darby directors named in the third party suits later asked the court to strike out the application, which the court did on Dec 13.
In the same statement, Sime also announced that the court had struck out the third party application filed earlier by former executive vice-president of Sime Darby’s energy and utilities (E&U) division Datuk Mohamad Shukri Baharom. Mohamad Shukri was named as a defendant in Sime Darby’s two legal claims alongside Ahmad Zubir.
“The High Court has allowed the applications by all 12 individuals in the O&G Suit and 11 individuals, Sime Engineering Sdn Bhd and Sime Darby Holdings Bhd in the Bakun suit and struck out Mohamad Shukri’s third party statement of claim, set aside the third party notices and dismissed the third party proceedings on the basis, among others, that the second defendant’s third party proceedings were frivolous and vexatious,” said the statement.
The High Court has scheduled Jan 19, 2012 for case management of the O&G suit and the Bakun suit.
It has been a year since Sime Darby filed suit against its executives after it revealed that three projects under its E&U division had suffered massive cost overruns.
The three projects are the Qatar Petroleum project, the Maersk Oil Qatar project and the project Marine, which relates to the construction of marine vessels.
After the massive cost overruns were revealed, Ahmad Zubir was asked to take a leave of absence ahead of the expiry of his contract on Nov 26.
Sime Darby appointed Zaid Ibrahim & Co to conduct a legal investigation into the losses suffered by the company in the projects under the E&U division.
The authorities, including the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and the Securities Commission, also conducted investigations into possible breaches of law relating to the three projects.
This article appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, December 16, 2011.
