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SATURDAY | MAY 23, 2026

ADE expansion plans get US$100m financing boost from QNB Group KUALA LUMPUR: Asia Digital

institutional support. I’m confident ADE will move even faster, expand further, and seize the huge opportunities in the MRO space, ultimately turning into a regional powerhouse.” QNB Group senior executive vice president, group corporate and institutional banking, Khalid Ahmed Al Sada said: “This successful financing reflects QNB Group’s strong track record of international financing arrangements. This is another step forward to actively support aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul financing and airspace growth in the Asian market, broadening QNB’s international footprint supported by its vision to become a leading bank in Measea while maintaining dominant market leadership.”

growing portfolio of airline customers, while supporting its long-term anchor customer, the AirAsia Group. ADE CEO Mahesh Kumar said,“We are proud to have earned the trust and support of a leading international bank such as QNB, and we sincerely appreciate their confidence in ADE. This reflects our financial track record, disciplined execution, and clear growth strategy.” Capital A CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said, “This is a testament to what ADE has become, and I’m incredibly proud. What started as an internal engineering capability serving AirAsia has now evolved into a fast-rising aviation services business supporting multiple global airlines, including customers like Air France, and attracting serious

Engineering Sdn Bhd (ADE), the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) subsidiary of Capital A Bhd, has secured a US$100 million (RM397 million) financing facility from QNB Group, one of the leading financial institutions in the Middle East and Africa, reflecting strong confidence in the company’s proven track record, accelerating growth trajectory, and long-term expansion potential. The financing will support ADE’s continued expansion and capacity growth, as it scales its capabilities and strengthens its position as one of the region’s fastest-growing MRO providers. The additional capacity is expected to enhance ADE’s ability to serve a Back in the black in third quarter, declares 3 sen interim dividend KUALA LUMPUR: Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd returned to the black with a net profit of RM80.1 million in the third quarter ended March 31, 2026 (Q3’26), compared with a net loss of RM115.97 million recorded in the corresponding quarter last year. Revenue, however, slipped to RM517.75 million from RM572.80 million, said the oil and gas exploration and production company in a Bursa Malaysia filing yesterday. The group declared a third interim single-tier dividend of 3 sen per share, bringing total dividend declared for the nine months FY2026 to 7 sen per share. The entitlement date is June 19 and payment is on July 17. In line with higher oil prices, the group is targeting a total dividend of 10 sen per share for FY2026, which is a one-sen increase from FY2025. Since its maiden dividend in FY2021, the group has seen an increase in dividend payout every year. Hibiscus Petroleum said the Q3 performance was underpinned by an average realised oil and condensate price of US$76.7 per barrel, which was a 12% increase quarter-on-quarter. For the nine months ended March 31, 2026 (9M26), Hibiscus Petroleum’s net profit rose to RM170.55 million from RM42.89 million in the previous corresponding period, while revenue stood at RM1.49 billion against RM1.70 billion previously. The group is seeing higher realised oil and gas prices in Q4’26. Oil offtakes in April and May 2026 are expected to account for 65% of the total oil to be sold in that quarter, with realised oil prices of over US$120 per barrel, according to a separate filing. It also noted that sales volume for Q3’26 was 2.3 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMboe) of oil, condensate, and gas, bringing the 9M FY2026 total sales to 6.7 MMboe. – Bernama

ADE Allstars (employees) thanking QNB for the financing facility.

M’sian aerospace workforce nears 35,000, tops 2030 goal

country, Sim noted. “Malaysia also plays a growing role in the global aerospace supply chain through the production of aircraft components and critical aerospace parts, including Airbus wing components manufactured by CTRM,” he added. Despite the sector’s rapid expansion, Sim acknowledged that Malaysia would still need additional investment, incentives and infrastructure development to strengthen its competitiveness and expand MRO capacity. “Clearly there’s more development that needs to be done, more incentive or funding that needs to be available to grow this particular sector because at the end of the day, 2030, the aim is to be the MRO centre number one in Southeast Asia,” he said. BMM is part of SIAEC’s regional base maintenance network, providing additional capacity to supplement hangars in Singapore and the Philippines, to support both widebody and narrowbody MRO of current and next generation aircraft across Asia-Pacific and beyond. BMM’s two-hangar facility can acco mmodate up to six concurrent aircraft checks. SIAEC said the opening of BMM reflects confidence in Malaysia as an important aerospace location as the country offers a strong aviation heritage, strategic location, established infrastructure, and a growing pool of skilled aerospace talent. Subang, in particular, continues to play a key role in Malaysia’s aviation and aerospace ecosystem. SIAEC CEO Chin Yau Seng said BMM is a strategic investment for SIAEC to drive sustainable long-term growth. “Together with SIAEC’s three other joint venture companies in Malaysia, comprising Asia Pacific Aircraft Component Services, Eaton Aero Services and Pos Aviation Engineering Services, BMM enhances our ability to support customers and provides an important platform for us to grow our presence in Malaysia. “We see strong potential in Malaysia’s aerospace sector, particularly in talent develop ment, technical capability and long-term industry growth,” he said. SIAEC’s BMM has obtained regulatory approvals for the first of its two hangars and performed its first A350 aircraft check in November 2025.

Sim said the expansion of SIAEC’s operations in Malaysia as a major milestone for the country’s aerospace ambitions and a strong en dorsement of Malaysia’s engineering capa bilities. SIAEC, the engineering arm of Singapore Airlines, operates only three base maintenance facilities globally, located in Singapore, the Philippines and now Malaysia, he noted. “This is a very important milestone for our MRO sector, which we aim to expand as part of our broader aerospace industry growth plans. The fact that SIAEC chose Malaysia for its base maintenance operations reflects confidence in our workforce capabilities, engineering quality and aerospace ecosystem.” Sim said SIAEC plans to begin operations in Malaysia with 350 workers and aims to double the workforce to 700 by next year as regional demand for aircraft maintenance services continues to rise. “Just now when we discussed with SIAEC, they highly commend our skilled workforce. They will start with 350, they will double up to 700 by next year.” Extensive workforce training is already taking place in both Singapore and Malaysia, with Malaysian engineers undergoing training in Singapore for up to a year while Singaporean personnel are also working locally with Malaysian teams, Sim said. “They are sent to Singapore for about a year for training. And Singaporeans are also coming to Malaysia to train our workforce and work together as a team,” he added. Sim said the collaboration reflects growing international confidence in Malaysia’s technical expertise, precision engineering capabilities and aerospace ecosystem. “The fact that they choose Malaysia for maintenance, that shows the confidence of SIA to Malaysia’s skills and capabilities of our workforce and our ecosystem. Aircraft maintenance work requires highly specialised engineering expertise and strict safety compliance due to the critical nature of aviation operations,” the deputy minister said. Malaysia’s aerospace ecosystem has continued expanding through the presence of major international aerospace companies such as Airbus, Boeing, Safran and Turkish Aerospace Industries, which have established manu facturing and engineering operations in the

o SIA Engineering’s opening of base maintenance facility in Subang a major milestone for country’s MRO capabilities: Deputy minister SUBANG: Malaysia has surpassed its 2030 target for high-skilled aerospace jobs, with the industry now employing nearly 35,000 workers, according to Deputy Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Sim Tze Tzin. Sim said the figure already exceeds the goal of creating 30,000 high-skilled aerospace jobs under the Malaysian Aerospace Industry Blueprint 2030 (MIAB 2030). “In terms of workforce development, we are closer to 35,000, so we’ve exceeded the MIAB 2030 target,” he told reporters after opening SIA Engineering Co Ltd’s (SIAEC) Base Maintenance Malaysia Hangar at Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, Subang, yesterday. The aerospace industry generated RM32.5 billion in revenue in 2025, including contri butions from maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services, aerospace manufacturing, aircraft parts and component activities, and remains on track to achieve RM55 billion by 2030, Sim said. The growth outlook is supported by strong aviation expansion across the Asia-Pacific region, which is currently the fastest-growing aerospace market globally amid rising passenger traffic, fleet expansion and increasing demand for aircraft maintenance services. “Malaysia is well-positioned to benefit from the regional upcycle due to its established aerospace ecosystem, skilled engineering workforce and growing presence of global aerospace players operating manufacturing and MRO facilities in the country,” Sim said. Malaysia currently hosts more than 270 aerospace engineering companies employing about 34,700 workers, including around 12,000 employees in the MRO segment alone. Ű BY HAYATUN RAZAK sunbiz@thesundaily.com