This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on August 4, 2025 - August 10, 2025

AFTER three tumultuous years in the Practice Note 17 (PN17) status for financially distressed companies, Avangaad Bhd (KL:AVANGAAD) — formerly known as EA Technique (M) Bhd — has finally charted its way out of troubled waters.

The turning point came with the entry of Voultier Sdn Bhd (VSB) as a white knight shareholder last year. The capital injection of RM79.6 million and operational revamp helped stabilise the once-ailing marine transport and offshore storage company.

In February 2022, EA Technique became a PN17 company after its shareholders’ equity of RM5.96 million as at end-December 2021 fell below 50% of its share capital of RM179.76 million.

Following the emergence of VSB as its new major shareholder with a controlling stake of 51% in June last year, EA Technique’s PN17 status was officially lifted in February this year.

VSB — 70% owned by Kinergy Advancement Bhd (KL:KAB) non-executive director Datuk Mubarak Hussain Akhtar Husin and 30% by Kinergy’s executive deputy chairman and group managing director Datuk Lai Keng Onn — had subscribed to 676.387 million new shares under EA Technique’s regularisation plan that was completed last year.

Sindora Bhd, controlled by Johor state-owned investment arm Johor Corporation, is Avangaad’s second largest shareholder with a stake of about 20%.

Now reborn as Avangaad, the company is no longer content with being seen as an oil and gas (O&G) player. Instead, it is positioning itself as a fully integrated maritime solutions provider — a “coordinator, operator and partner” (COP) — focusing on marine transport, offshore storage and port marine services.

The name Avangaad is a combination of “avante”, meaning “moving forward”, and “vanguard”, meaning leadership and strength.

Mubarak, now an executive director of Avangaad, highlights that the company’s new identity and unique position are underpinned by its diversified fleet, as well as renewed contracts with blue-chip clients such as energy giant Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) and port operator Northport (M) Bhd.

“We no longer want to be seen purely as an O&G player as we intend to reduce the cyclical industry risk. Avangaad’s strategic direction is to position itself as Malaysia’s integrated maritime COP, offering comprehensive marine logistics across various sectors.

“We will be focusing on vessel chartering, offshore storage and port logistics. Our unique 4Ps model (port, people, product, platform) reflects this diversification,” he tells The Edge in an exclusive interview at the company’s head office in Setiawangsa, Kuala Lumpur.

Mubarak says that while Avangaad has no direct comparable peers on Bursa Malaysia, the company benchmarks itself against integrated logistics and maritime players such as MISC Bhd (KL:MISC), which is known for its diversified service offerings and financial strength.

“We wish to send a clear brand positioning to our stakeholders that Avangaad is not solely structured to provide marine services, but is strategically evolving into a strong industrial player with a robust and diversified portfolio.

“Our service offerings already span petroleum product tankers, offshore floating storage, port marine tug and mooring, as well as marine engineering services. We are also hopeful of developing the capacity for shipbuilding, thereby contributing significantly to Malaysia’s marine fleet modernisation,” he elaborates.

Mubarak, 49, joined the board of Avangaad in July last year. He began his career as the managing director of several companies, starting with Seri Jaya Perkasa Sdn Bhd in 2000, focusing primarily on construction and property development.

In 2005, he founded security services provider MN Millennium Security Sdn Bhd. Subsequently, in 2014, he ventured into investment holding with the establishment of VSB.

Interestingly, despite the change in Avangaad’s largest shareholder, former banker Nasrul Asni Muhammad Dain remains CEO — a position he has held since March 2022, when he was brought in by Johor Corporation.

Avangaad’s management team, however, has been strengthened with the addition of new faces. John Chin Sze How joined as chief operating officer in August last year, while Ang Jia Ping came on board as chief financial officer in June this year.

It is worth noting that Mubarak’s younger brother Datuk Seri Nazir Hussin also joined Avangaad as executive director in July last year.

According to Mubarak, EA Technique, which was established in 1993, has a long-standing history in Malaysia’s maritime sector. Initially recognised as a specialist in marine transport, offshore storage and port marine services, the group has achieved significant milestones, including listing on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia in 2014.

Unfortunately, EA Technique faced several critical issues leading to its PN17 classification, including financial losses due to prolonged disputes and substantial cost overruns from an engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning (EPCIC) project involving vessel conversion.

This was compounded by declining revenues caused by volatile crude oil prices, increased vessel impairment and high legal costs.

“These issues severely affected our balance sheet, impacting shareholders’ equity and leading to the PN17 status about 3½ years ago. We have since addressed these challenges through a restructuring plan, disciplined financial management, strategic asset divestments and a focused debt restructuring process, enabling our successful upliftment from PN17.

“This restructuring also includes strategic acquisitions, such as Bumi Jaya Shipcare Sdn Bhd, which would expand our fleet capabilities, diversify our service offerings, and establish a solid financial foundation,” he says.

For perspective, Avangaad currently operates a diversified fleet of 26 marine vessels, which includes tugboats and fast crew boats, as well as two product tankers and one floating storage and offloading (FSO) unit, strategically deployed across its maritime logistics segments.

“The estimated market value of our fleet was around RM497 million as at Dec 31 last year, reflecting well-maintained assets and operational readiness.

“Additionally, we recently announced the proposed acquisition of Bumi Jaya Shipcare for RM49 million, which is currently in progress and, upon completion, will add five vessels to our fleet, increasing our total fleet size to 31. We expect this acquisition to be completed by the fourth quarter this year,” says Mubarak.

Avangaad reported a more than sixfold jump in net profit to RM154.3 million for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2024 (FY2024), largely attributed to a one-off gain from debt write-backs following successful creditor settlement schemes that involved substantial haircuts. Excluding these exceptional items from the debt forgiveness, its core earnings were RM25.2 million.

In the first quarter ended March 31, 2025 (1QFY2025), Avangaad reported a net profit of RM4.65 million. Over the past 12 months, its stock price had declined by 12% to settle at 29 sen last Thursday, giving it a market capitalisation of RM384.61 million.

Mubarak acknowledges that Avangaad’s share price performance may currently reflect investors’ cautious sentiment post-PN17, but he believes that it remains fundamentally a growth-oriented company.

Key growth catalysts include ongoing fleet expansion, notably through the upcoming Bumi Jaya Shipcare acquisition, securing high-value, long-term contracts, fleet modernisation initiatives and active regional market expansion.

“With these growth drivers clearly in place, we are confident investors will see long-term value reflected in our share price,” he says.

With VSB as the new major shareholder, Mubarak believes Avangaad is on a clear path of sustainable growth. Currently, the company maintains an order book of RM141.7 million, with an additional RM214.6 million in optional contracts, reflecting strong earnings visibility.

“Our recently secured long-term contracts, including key tugboat agreements with Northport and multi-year extensions with Petronas, significantly strengthen our operational outlook. Additionally, our tender book remains active with more than RM50 million, with several high-value contracts being pursued, providing clear growth potential and reinforcing future earnings stability,” he comments.

In FY2024, Avangaad’s revenue stood at RM122.7 million. Marine transport contributes roughly 60% of the group’s turnover, whereas port marine services account for the remaining 40%.

“Port marine services have also grown significantly due to new contracts and renewals from strategic clients like Northport, reflecting increasing demand for reliable tugboat and port services,’ says Mubarak.

Meanwhile, Avangaad will continue to evaluate further fleet expansion opportunities, focusing particularly on modern, green and fuel-efficient vessels aligned with its sustainability goals, strengthening the group’s market position and operational capabilities.

“We are executing a structured three-phase growth strategy: strengthening current operations and financial health; regional fleet expansion and diversification of vessel types; and entering new regional markets via joint ventures,” he concludes.

As at March 31 this year, Avangaad’s net debt position stood at RM40.2 million, bringing its net gearing ratio to 0.13 times. 

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