KTL to import seafood into Singapore; eyes lab-grown diamond foray

WATCH-LISTED KTL Global is looking to enter the lab-grown diamond business, and has separately inked a deal to import fish and seafood into Singapore.

In a filing on Wednesday night, KTL said its wholly-owned subsidiary, Gold Heartland, signed a three-year strategic collaboration agreement with three companies "to harness the business opportunities in the lab-grown diamond industry".

Gold Heartland will undertake the investment and management of the "X DIAMOND" brand of lab-grown diamonds, starting with an omni-channel brand development strategy and market research.

The brand was created by two of the three companies, X Diamond Capital and Guangdong X Diamond Technology. These two firms have product design capabilities, research and development expertise and an integrated manufacturing and supply chain for lab-grown diamonds, KTL said.

WIN+, the other company that signed the agreement, will be involved in the branding and marketing activities under the omni-channel strategy, supporting the business activities of the online and offline "X DIAMOND" stores.

The first flagship store for the brand will be located in Singapore, before the online stores are progressively launched in the rest of Asia.

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Separately, China-based aquaculture producer QuanYing Technology will supply fish and seafood to KTL, under a three-year supply agreement.

KTL will then market and distribute them for sale in Singapore. It is targeting to import 120 containers of fish and seafood annually into the city-state.

QuanYing Technology has an indoor aquaculture facility in China producing coral trout, giant grouper, barramundi, marbled goby, prawns, mud crabs, and more.

Chin Teck Oon, KTL executive director, said: "While local seafood production has increased over the years, we believe that there are good opportunities to expand and diversify food supply from overseas sources to enhance food security in Singapore."

KTL on Tuesday morning requested a trading halt. Its shares closed at 11.6 Singapore cents last Friday.

Last month, the company said it planned to acquire an industrial property at Tuas as it diversifies into the distribution business. KTL also proposed to take a 51 per cent stake in a Singapore e-commerce platform to develop its fresh produce business segment.