Singapore-based rubber plantation firm GMG Global (GMGG.SI) plans to more than double its output in two to three years, partly through acquisitions in Southeast Asia, its chief executive said on Monday. 

 

Elson Ng, who is also president of the firm, told Reuters in an interview that the company will also seek to expand its plantation area in Cameroon to boost output and feed growing demand for rubber, especially from China. 

 

“We want to grow fast,” Ng said. “This year, I want to quickly use up what I have left from the rights issue if opportunities prevail.”

 

“We had 62,800 tonnes of output in 2008, which is very small compared to the overall 10 million tonnes world output,” said Ng. “In the next two to three years, we want to double or triple our output.”

 

Rubber prices have soared in the past four months and recently hit their highest in over half a century. 

 

That has also helped GMG's share price to rise by more than 27% this year, after a nearly 70% jump in 2009. 

 

The company, which is controlled by China's state firm Sinochem, plans to use the proceeds from its $97 million rights issue last year to fund possible acquisitions in Southeast Asia, Ng said. The acquisitions could include  processing plants, or plantations in Indochina, he said.