KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysia’s Synergy Drive Bhd. said Monday it is set to be listed on Malaysia’s bourse in November as the world’s largest palm oil producer, following the merger of three plantation groups and their units.

The merger is expected to result in annual savings of 500 million ringgit (US$147 million, €106.5 million) for Synergy Drive, which is set up to consolidate Sime Darby, Golden Hope Plantations, Kumpulan Guthrie and their units, said Ahmad Zubir Musrshid, chief executive designate of the company.

The merger creates the world’s largest listed palm oil producer. The company holds 560,000 hectares of oil palm land in Malaysia and Indonesia, and contributes 8 percent of global output or 2.2 million tons of crude palm oil a year, it said in a statement.

Synergy Drive expects total annual revenue of more than 26 billion ringgit (US$8 billion, €5.8 billion) and operating profit in excess of 2.7 billion ringgit (US$794 million, €575.24 million), it said.

Shares of Synergy Drive are slated for listing in November when the deal is completed, Ahmad Zubir said in the statement.

Plans are in place to strengthen the company’s noncore activities, such as property, heavy equipment, automotive, energy and utilities, as well, he said, without giving details.

Upon listing, Synergy Drive will be the second most valuable company on the Kuala Lumpur stock exchange, with an expected market capitalization of 48.3 billion ringgit (US$14 billion, €10.14 billion), the statement added.

Malaysia is the world’s top producer of palm oil, currently being developed as a supplement to or replacement for fossil fuels. The merger, pushed forward by the Malaysian government, is part of efforts to galvanize the industry amid stiff competition from rival Indonesia.

Palm oil exports are Malaysia‘s second-largest foreign exchange earner after electronics

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