KUALA LUMPUR: KPower Bhd's share price surged 15 sen or 36.59% to an intraday high of 56 sen a share following an announcement that Datuk Mohd Abdul Karim Abdullah had stepped down as its non-independent non-executive chairman.

       The group's warrants doubled in value to 18 sen within the first 20 minutes of trading.

       Shares in KPower had been halted for trading on Bursa Malaysia from 9am to 10 am on Tuesday in light of the material announcement.

       According to a late-Monday filing with Bursa Malaysia giving notice of the resignation, Mohd Abdul Karim had left the board of KPower "to pursue other matters".

       In a statement, KPower said group deputy chairman Mustakim Mat Nun will temporarily assume the chairman's position.

       Mohd Abdul Karim, together with Grand Deal Vision Sdn Bhd, emerged as majority shareholders in KPower in 2019.

       "Since then, Dato’ Karim and the new management team have successfully transformed KPower from a loss-making manufacturing business into a renowned and indomitable player in the renewable energy industry.

       "Under the new leadership also, the group successfully diversified its business into the healthcare and logistics business segments," said the group.