KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Plantation Bhd (SD Plantation) has announced its intention to change its brand name to SD Guthrie Bhd.
The decision was announced to Bursa Malaysia earlier today, notifying the public of the company's intention to seek shareholders' approval for the new brand at an extraordinary general meeting (EGM).
The notice of EGM will be issued in due course.
"This is a significant milestone in our 200-year history and comes at a pivotal time for us as an organisation," said SD Plantation chairman Tan Sri Dr Nik Norzrul Thani Nik Hassan Thani.
"We have established clear leadership in our industry on many fronts and have grown our downstream business into a significant revenue contributor.
"As a landowner in Malaysia, we are also cognisant of the many opportunities to create value for our shareholders."
The decision to rebrand was made after several months of discussions with experts in the fields of law, intellectual property and brand identity.
All necessary legal and regulatory approvals for the rebranding will be obtained.
"We believe it is the prerogative of any large company with ambitions for sustainable growth, to own and control its brand and identity.
"With this change to SD Guthrie, we will be able to assert full control over our identity and explore opportunities that will best serve the interests of our shareholders," said SD Plantation group managing director Datuk Mohamad Helmy Othman Basha.
The "Sime Darby" brand is owned and controlled by Sime Darby Bhd, the former parent company of SD Plantation.
Since the demerger and listing of SD Plantation six and a half years ago, it has operated under a licence, subject to the terms of a brand and trademark licensing agreement, paying an annual fee for the use of the "Sime Darby" brand.
This situation imposes significant constraints on SD Plantation's ability to make its own strategic decisions for the brand and business.
In proposing "SD Guthrie" as the new brand, the company aims to present itself as a fully integrated player in the industry, with interests and potential beyond upstream plantations.
"Additionally, the brand SD Guthrie is very much a part of the history of the company, paying homage to its recent past as part of the Sime Darby group, as well as its origins more than 200 years ago with Alexander Guthrie.
"The original Guthrie story was one of ambition, Enterprise, and resilience, of both its early founders and its subsequent Malaysian leaders,
attributes which continue to resonate in the company today."
SD Plantation started out as a trading house in Singapore in 1821, as Guthrie & Co.
Over the years, through multiple corporate exercises, it grew into one of the largest plantation companies in the world.
"To us however, our commitments to sustainability, innovation and quality are as important as our scale, reach and capacity.
"This is why we continue to explore new technologies and invest in continuous improvement.
We understand the changing needs of the world, and we are looking forward to an exciting future," Mohamad Helmy said.