Bina Puri upbeat on cracking RM1b mark

The company expects 2011 to be one of its better years since its listing in 1995, says Bina Puri's group managing director

BINA Puri Holdings Bhd, which is expanding its business, is bullish that revenue will surpass RM1 billion this year, its chief said.



"This year is all about execution of projects and finishing existing jobs. We expect 2011 to be one of our better years since our listing in 1995," group managing director Tan Sri Tee Hock Seng told Business Times.

In 2010, Bina Puri secured projects worth RM2.5 billion. Among the contracts it won were the Ampang light rail transit line extension, the low-cost carrier terminal in Sepang, the Kuala Lumpur-Kuala Selangor Expressway privatisation project and building ramps and a main line bridge for the Eastern Dispersal Link in Johor.

The company hopes to maintain the rate of new contracts this year by securing RM2.5 billion worth of work.
It has bid for building and infrastructure projects worth over RM2 billion, in Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei and the Middle East.

For the nine months ended September 30 2010, Bina Puri posted a net profit of RM8.13 million on revenue of RM861 million. In 2009, Bina Puri made RM6.4 million on revenue of RM780.1 million.

Tee said the company's order book of RM3.3 billion will help improve its earnings for the next two to three years.

Meanwhile, Tee said Bina Puri is on a drive to expand its property division, which contributes less than 10 per cent to its revenue and net profit.

Bina Puri ventured into property development in the 1980sas a boutique developer.

Some of its prime projects include Bukit Idaman township in Selayang and Jesselton Condominium in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

Tee expects contribution from the division this year to be in the region of 15 per cent with RM900 million worth of housing projects in Klang Valley, Johor and Sabah.

"We want to expand the division because of the higher margins that can be made from property development. We don't want to be too dependent on construction, which is harder to take on," Tee said.

By Business Times

Malaysia woos luxury hotel brands

Bulgari, Armani and Versace may no longer be just luxury retail brands found in Malaysian malls, as property developers think about bringing in their hotel brands too.

With brands like Grand Hyatt, Mandarin Oriental and Four Seasons already here while St Regis and Raffles have confirmed openings, developers are eyeing fresh and popular hotel brands.

"Developers are now beginning to look at Waldorf Astoria and also various designer-linked brands like Bulgari Hotels & Resorts, Palazzo Versace, Armani Hotels & Resorts," vice president of the Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) Ivo Nekvapil told Business Times in an interview recently.



If these brands make their way to our shores, they are likely to be located either in Kuala Lumpur or on Langkawi island.

Nevertheless, Nekvapil feels that sub-brands or brands that come under their more familiar parent company name should be considered as they have potential in Malaysia.

These would include brands like All Seasons and Ibis which are Accor brand hotels and Hilton Garden Inn, a Hilton group brand.

He explained that these brands have international recognition and as such Malaysia too needs these brands to give the country world recognition.

Meanwhile, when asked about the hotel scene in Klang Valley this year, Nekvapil said that there could be an addition of some 2,000 rooms in the four- and five-star hotel/serviced residence category.

Additional rooms this year will come from the opening of Somerset Ampang Kuala Lumpur, Best Western KL Sentral, Park Regis Kuala Lumpur and Pullman Kuala Lumpur Bangsar.

On occupancy and rates in the Klang Valley, Nekvapil said that 2011 could end with an average room rate (ARR) of RM360 for lower end five-star hotels and about RM500 for higher end five-star category hotels. Occupancy this year could finish at about 68 per cent.

Mandarin Oriental still leads the pack, and is now drawing an ARR of around RM700.

Last year, occupancy ended at around 65 per cent and ARR of between RM200 to RM320 per night.

Malaysia had its highest occupancy of over 70 per cent in 2007.

By Business Times