1MDB: Our acquisitions are not driven by political considerations

“As we have previously stated, we only acquire assets when we are convinced that they represent long-term value, and to suggest that any of our acquisitions were driven by political considerations is simply false," 1MDB said in a media statement.

“The fact of the matter is that these claims are a repetition of old allegations that have been driven by political opponents of the Government, including the former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad," 1MDB said.

“They have never been substantiated nor supported by evidence, just as Mahathir has never produced any evidence for his claim that RM42 billion was missing from 1MDB, because the reality is that this RM42 billion is debt backed by RM51 billion of assets,” 1MDB said commenting on a Wall Street Journal article suggesting the company had overpaid for the acquisition of its energy assets.

It said it takes a long-term view of value when entering into transactions.

“The acquisition price we paid was based on this long-term view, as well as advice received from independent valuation advisers, and the prevailing market conditions at the time.

“On this basis, we believe that the value paid upon asset acquisition – which may have involved a premium in certain instances, as is common when acquiring another business – is commensurate with the existing and future potential of the assets,” it said, adding that since acquiring the first energy asset in 2012, 1MDB has built a leading international independent power producer in Southeast Asia.

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1MDB said the portfolio currently comprises 13 power plants in five countries, along with the rights to construct further gas and solar-powered plants.

“Today, Edra Energy is the second largest independent power producer in Malaysia, and the largest in Egypt and Bangladesh, with additional operations in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates.