ValueBuddies.com : Value Investing Forum - Singapore, Hong Kong, U.S.

Hi Freedom, like your name sake, you are free to choose what you believe. As long as the cash generation model is sustainable, I wouldn't mind where the next pot of cash is coming from. Like Mao once said - black or white cat, as long as they catch the mice, they are good cat.

If you can suggest to me another Buffet type of cash generating type of sgx listed business, I m definitely open to evaluate them.

(17-04-2012, 08:23 PM)freedom Wrote: [ -> ]why would you not say if Salcon Water takes off, it will be worth much more than OMH. I bet that Boustead knows more and better about Salcon Water than OMH. Diworsification normally start with investment into something you might not know well. Not that I am suggesting OMH is diworsification.

like I said earlier, I invest into Boustead because it is Boustead, not because it speculates on OMH. like any speculation, it is subject to high risk.

http://info.sgx.com/webcoranncatth.nsf/V...300330D68/$file/Boustead_Announcement-Incorporation_of_a_Subsidiary_in_India-17.04.2012.pdf?openelement

Indian oil refinery calling? Any buddies can share knowledge of impending capex on Indian oil refineries. Long time since C&E is seeing some actions.

Usually a refinery project will cost between US$8-9 billion. They are typicaly awarded out in various packages. Nobody bids for lump sum turnkey in these projects anymore due its enormous size and substantial execution risks (esp in countries like India) and tight labour/materials market in the energy industry. So usual approach is to appoint a PMC who will oversee the progress by various sub-contractors. I suppose Boustead will go after some of the smaller work packages.

(17-04-2012, 03:41 PM)shanrui_91 Wrote: [ -> ]The only caveat is that no one can be assured that environmental or nationalistic issue will not destroy the deal. This is part of the SCORE project where they are making use of the comparative advantage of Sarawak with its 28000 MW renewable supply of energy. Risk is mitigated by the fact that there are 2 other aluminum smelter plants and that it is stationed in an industrial park far away from the urban area. Singapore is a 710 square km piece of land with a population of 5m people. Sarawak is a 124,450 square km piece of land (175 x of Singapore) with 2.31 million people. Thus, even if it were to conduct pollutive activity in a land size of 50x Singapore, there will still be sufficient safe land for the purpose of accommodation.

For manganese price to resume its uptrend, global steel production needs to ramp up though supply has already begun to cut. Prices seemed to have bottomed due to the ability of the mining companies to cut production as a result of a highly concentrated industry.

(vested)

Take my words as a pinch of salt if you wish. I have verified with my friend who has worked for a big steel company in the past who has evaluated greenfield projects for manganese plants somewhere in Kazahstan area that the environment risk of manganese production is not high as compared to the other heavy industries. I even mentioned parkinson disease and stuff but he said it was never a concern even by regulatory bodies.

Shanrui is very right to point out the production cost structure and the future of manganese heavily depends on the production of steel. Now, we have to be careful as we might not be able to see a recovery of steel industry with China slowing down their iron ore imports. The tremendous growth and the habit of the Chinese preferring to use resources from external (keeping their own resources for rainy day) in the past might be over. Therefore, even I am a little concerned about a recovery of dry bulk shipping markets in terms of iron ore and coal demand from the largest importer in the world from a demand point of view.

my 2 cents

ps. meanwhile it is nice to finally see someone or expert contributing their expertise to the forum that cannot be easily researched from the internet. Kudos tfs.

OMH gapped up at opening (49) this morning in ASX trade. Now trading comfortably above 50 at 51.

OMH jumped 25% since y'day after releasing its 1Q2012 market update. This time round, Boustead really looks good even though may be early days in its small but strategic 8% stake.

(18-04-2012, 08:36 AM)greengiraffe Wrote: [ -> ]OMH gapped up at opening (49) this morning in ASX trade. Now trading comfortably above 50 at 51.

OMH jumped 25% since y'day after releasing its 1Q2012 market update. This time round, Boustead really looks good even though may be early days in its small but strategic 8% stake.

Perhaps people are getting a little over-exuberant. After all, there is no evidence of an improvement yet in OMH's results. I would think the share price would probably settle down at a level lower than AUD 50 cents.

GIS market in APAC to grow at 14 percent

Publish Date: 26 July 2011

UK: The GIS market in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region is expected to grow at a CAGR of 14 percent, according to a market research conducted by TechNavio, a market research firm. In addition the report, Geographic Information System (GIS) in APAC 2010-2014, indicated that the market is currently being driven by government and public sector adoption of this technology.

A TechNavio analyst explained that governments of developing countries require GIS solutions for infrastructure improvement and disaster prevention management. In addition, the public sector and government also use this technology to monitor deforestation, water bodies, and river beds. As a result the public sector and government have become key end-users driving the adoption of GIS solutions in the APAC region.

In spite of the demand for GIS solutions in the APAC region, integration issues with cloud technologies are hindering the growth of this market. However, with this technology being used effectively for key issues such as population density control, the market is expected to grow. Moreover, the GIS market is witnessing an increase in the use of this technology in agricultural and urban development.

The GIS market in the APAC region has also been witnessing increased utilisation of GIS for transportation management. However, barriers faced by vendors in the integration of GIS and cloud technologies could pose a challenge to the growth of this market. These are just some of the important findings presented in the report that will enable companies to fully understand the potential in this market and formulate their own strategies.

The report is based on extensive research conducted with industry experts, vendors, and end-users. It examines the key trends, drivers, and challenges impacting the evolution of this market. The report also contains an in-depth discussion and SWOT analysis of each of the key vendors in this market.

Key vendors dominating this market space include ESRI, GE Energy, Autodesk, Cadcorp, and IBM.

Source: CNBC

South Australian fire services to embrace Esri's solutions

Publish Date: 23 April 2012

Australia: South Australia’s 13,500 Country Fire Service (CFS) collaborated with Esri Australia to develop a GIS solution. It will be based-on multi-layered digital maps to provide front-line crews with detailed information as emergency incidents unfold.

CFS Operations Planning Officer Nick Cundell said GIS technology can offer valuable environmental and historical data during emergencies. “When encountering an emergency situation, it’s vital that we know exactly what’s occurring at the incident,” Cundell said.

“GIS technology enables us to access previously collated fire, asset, environmental and other data through an easy-to-understand visual context of maps,” he added. “This information can be analysed to derive greater meaning – and our planning team pass on that information to our people on the ground so they can make informed judgements about how to best respond to a situation. This ultimately results in improving the use of our available resources,” explained Cundell.

“CFS agency-partner the Department of Environment and Natural Resources uses the same GIS technology, which has proved particularly valuable during several regional fires, including the Woolundunga fire in the Flinders Ranges in January.”

Esri Australia's GIS technology was also used to develop Brisbane’s flood map, which provided a real-time picture of water levels, hazards and emergency infrastructure for local authorities and the public.

Esri Australia South Australian Business Manager David Trengove stated, as well as assisting the CFS during the fire danger season, GIS technology also supported fire prevention strategies – such as the planning of fire breaks and the locations of safer precincts for local communities.

“GIS technology acts as a central point of truth for all CFS data and supports aircraft fleet management, bushfire prevention, community education, equipment maintenance and even training regimes,” said Trengove.

Trengove added that the visual nature of GIS technology is highly suitable to the work done by the CFS.

“The technology gives emergency response personnel the ability to understand where an emergency is in relation to the location and the proximity of people, assets and environmental variables is crucial,” noted Trengove.

“The technology’s intuitive user interface also allows anyone to use it, even if they don’t have an in-depth understanding of GIS. What is vital is that the information accessed by CFS personnel is easily accessible, up-to-date and useful – because in high pressure situations, the accuracy and timeliness of data is paramount.”

Source: Esri Australia

The following is an exciting development for ESRI Australia and MapData Services - 100% stake acquired for A$2.5m on 12 Feb 2010. MDS client base boast of the who's who amongst Australian corporates. Hence the potential for sustainable growth in the high cash generative division must not be under-estimated.

12 Feb 2010 - ESRI Australia Acquired 100% of MapData Services Pty:

http://www.boustead.sg/Boustead%20Announ...%20Ltd.pdf

About MapData Services Pty:

http://www.mapds.com.au/AboutMDS/tabid/61/Default.aspx


http://esriaustralia.com.au/news/technol...ess-nar-77

Technology partnership sparks new virtual world for Australian business
By Alicia Stumm20 Apr 2012



A new world of digital 3D imagery has been opened up to Australian businesses, following a landmark partnership between Esri Australia subsidiary MapData Services (MDS) and 3D imagery experts earthmine Australia.

The alliance will see online data mapping specialists MDS - which is renowned for developing online maps and mobile apps for companies such as Woolworths, Caltex and NAB - introduce a powerful new 3D street level imagery capability to their portfolio.

The technology will also be available to Esri Australia clients through the partnership.

MDS General Manager Cassandra Barker said the partnership heralded the future of organisational data management and analysis in Australia.

“Managing information from a geographic, map-based perspective has become common place in today’s business environment - but user expectations have grown beyond flat, 2D imagery,” Ms Barker said.

“Through MDS’ partnership with earthmine Australia, we can create a compelling ‘real-life’ digital experience that transports the user into a dynamic virtual world.

“For a staff member in a government department, this could mean performing audits on council assets - such trees or roads - from their computer, without having to make a trip into the field.

“For retailers - it could mean providing customers with an ‘augmented reality’ mobile app that creates a highly personalised, cutting-edge shopping experience.

“Real estate agents could use the technology to virtually show prospective buyers around properties and neighbourhoods - without actually leaving the office.

“The implications of this partnership are enormous - and as the nation’s leading digital mapping specialists, we are eager to start delivering this capability to Australian businesses.”

earthmine Australia CEO Peter Markham said the partnership would enable MDS to deliver highly accurate, panoramic street level 3D imagery of suburbs, cities and states Australia-wide.

“Businesses will be able to collect their own data - or tap into our library of pre-existing 3D street level imagery to create a visual experience unlike any other,” Mr Markham said.

“Through our partnership with MDS, we are looking forward to delivering an exciting new approach for managing and visualising assets that will benefit many Australian organisations.”

Unlike other imagery software solutions in the market, the end-to-end earthmine solution has plug ins for seamless integration with major Geographic Information System (GIS) technology, including AutoCAD and the world-leading Esri ArcGIS platform.

“GIS professionals will now be able to view their spatial data and analysis in the context of the real world,” said Ms Barker.

“Users can easily navigate their geodatabase in 3D and layer spatial information on top of vivid real-world imagery to achieve a new and incredibly detailed perspective of a situation.”

Ms Barker said the onset of location-aware 3D technology was coming at the right time for progressive Australian businesses - many of which are already leveraging location-based technology.

“Thousands of organisations across the country already use mapping in their day to day business - whether it’s to provide store locations to customers, or manage their assets or analyse their data,” said Ms Barker.

“Australian businesses are ready to take it to the next level - and the team at MDS is keen to start adding that third dimension to traditional digital applications.”

Esri Australia Managing Director Brett Bundock said through this new 3D offering, MDS would further grow its position as digital mapping gurus.

“MDS has a rich history in digital mapping and has maintained a comfortable position as leader’s in their field for more than 15 years.

“As part of the Esri Australia group of companies, we have seen MDS grow its offering and establish a formidable market presence that belies their size.

“By adding 3D capabilities to their portfolio, I expect we will see this dynamic company continue to push the limits beyond what anyone thought possible in the online mapping space.”