Established a Wholly-owned Subsidiary in Singapore to Seize Development Opportunities Presented by Belt and Road Initiative
HONG KONG — AP Rentals Holdings Limited (“AP Rentals” or the “Group” ; Stock Code: 1496), a leading equipment rental-related solutions provider in Hong Kong, has established a wholly-owned subsidiary in Singapore to expand into the Southeast Asian market and to seize business opportunities presented by the PRC’s “Belt and Road” initiative.
Hong Kong and Macau have been the primary markets of the Group. However, in view of increasingly stringent environmental requirements imposed by the Hong Kong Government on the construction industry, the Group has been planning over the past years to expand overseas, and believes this year would be the right time to do so. In March 2017, AP Rentals established a wholly-owned subsidiary, AP Equipment Rentals (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (“AP Singapore”), in Singapore – and appointed Mr. Mitsuya Shinji as AP Singapore’s director. Through this subsidiary, the Group will be able to expand its construction equipment trading business into Southeast Asian countries by disposing of aged machinery with lower utilisation rate in such markets. Driven by the PRC’s “Belt and Road” national development initiative, Southeast Asian countries have increased investment in infrastructure, resulting in strong demand for construction equipment. The disposal of the aforementioned equipment is expected to bring additional income to the Group and also helps streamline its fleet, thereby reducing maintenance and storage costs and associated depreciation expenses. Proceeds from the disposals will be used for re-investment, improving facilities for equipment maintenance, and installing a GPS equipment monitoring system to further raise the efficiency and quality of its equipment rental service.
Mr. Lau Pong Sing, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of AP Rentals, said, “AP Rentals has been actively searching for opportunities to venture into new markets. In recent years, the Group has charted the changes in the Hong Kong and Southeast Asian markets, and has devised strategic plans to capture business opportunities arising from such changes. As one of the founding members of ASEAN, Singapore is in close proximity to the other ASEAN member states and has built close ties with them. The Group set up its subsidiary in Singapore in view of the strategic advantage. The expansion will bring new breakthroughs to the Group’s business by further extending its influence in all of the Southeast Asian countries along the “Belt and Road” route. The Group will also be able to serve markets in close proximity to such countries and keep abreast of market needs. Mr. Mitsuya Shinji possesses years of experience in the construction machinery trading and rental industry and has maintained close ties with Japanese companies in the region. Through his involvement, the Group should be able to develop closer relations with its Japanese partners and to better penetrate the Southeast Asian market. This market has already responded favourably to the Group’s new business – a business that will expand the Group’s foundation for development and greatly contribute to its long-term advancement.”