Haze probe: 3 companies agree to assessors

SINGAPORE – Three more Singapore-registered companies potentially linked to regional fires that led to transboundary haze have agreed to cooperate with assessments by a specialist panel that will examine and hold such firms accountable.

The three companies are Singapore Exchange-listed TSH Resources, Bumitama Agri and Kencana Agri.

TSH Resources was not directly named in the notices issued by the National Environment Agency (NEA), but two of its Singapore-incorporated subsidiaries – TSH Global Plantation and TSH Oversea – were among the 10 companies that received them.

The 10 companies are:

Representatives of these companies were issued notices under Singapore’s Transboundary Haze Pollution Act. They were summoned for a closed-door meeting on Oct 28 with Senior Minister K. Shanmugam, Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong and Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu.

During that meeting, Shanmugam told them that they had to engage a firm from the specialist panel to conduct thorough inquiries into their operations, corporate relationships and supply chains.

In a filing on the SGX dated Nov 2, mainboard-listed TSH Resources said it has written to NEA confirming that the group is “very keen” to engage, voluntarily and at its own cost, the assessors from the Government’s panel of assessors, to evaluate its operations, corporate relationships and supply chains in connection with the fires in Indonesia that have contributed to the transboundary haze.

The company said it will cooperate with the assessors in carrying out their assessment, in accordance with applicable laws and regulatory requirements, and as may be directed by NEA.

It added that it shares the Government’s concern over the impact of the fires and haze, and welcomes the opportunity to engage constructively with the relevant authorities and independent assessors.

Fellow mainboard-listed Bumitama Agri also said it has communicated its commitment to voluntarily engage assessors from the Government’s panel at its own cost.

The company said it would cooperate with the assessors in accordance with applicable laws and regulatory requirements, and as directed by NEA.

It also noted that it shares the Government’s concern over the impact of the fires and haze, and welcomes the opportunity to engage constructively with the relevant authorities and independent assessors.

Meanwhile, Kencana Agri said in a filing on Nov 1 that it had written to NEA on Oct 30 confirming that it would voluntarily engage assessors from the Government’s panel at its own cost.

The company said it would cooperate with the assessors in accordance with applicable laws and regulatory requirements, and as directed by NEA.

It added that it shares the Government’s concern over the impact of the fires and haze, and welcomes the opportunity to engage constructively with the relevant authorities and independent assessors.

All three companies said they would provide further updates when there were material developments.

Shares of TSH Resources were unchanged at 36 cents in morning trading on Nov 2, while Kencana Agri shares were also flat at 48 cents. Bumitama Agri shares fell 3.29% to $1.47.