Excavators are seen at a sand quarry in Dengkil, July 24, 2010. — File picKUALA LUMPUR, March 17 — Selangor-owned Kumpulan Hartanah Selangor Bhd (KHSB) has denied claims by a local daily that it is in dispute with state’s sand-mining concessionaire, Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd (KSSB).

In a filing made to Bursa Malaysia today, KHSB also said none of its officials was in contact with The Star, which has run stories on the alleged spat, or any other media.

The government-linked company said it had not been “forced” to give approval to KSSB to extract sand from one of its sites, contrary to reports made earlier this week by the English-language daily.

KHSB added it was now seeking advice from its lawyers on the next course of action against the paper.

The Star had reported on Thursday that KHSB was at loggerheads with the state’s sole licensed sand supplier after being forced to give approval to KSSB to extract sand from a 20-hectare site in Dengkil at a rate of RM4.50 per tonne.

The leading English daily said anonymous KHSB sources had allegedly said the company was forced to accept RM630,000 from KSSB for the deal when it should have been paid RM2.6 million.

The Selangor mentri besar intervened when KHSB threatened legal action over the underpayment, citing a mining policy that stated GLCs get eight per cent from the land’s selling price, the newspaper added.

KSSB, set up by Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim in 2008, recorded a profit of RM7million in one year.

KHSB sources purportedly told The Star, however, the profit came at the expense of KHSB, which owns sand-mining sites across Selangor, among other assets.