Bina Puri eyes first profit since 2019, pins hopes on Sarawak jobs
Bina Puri says it has since focused its efforts on completing these loss-making jobs to ease the burden on future profits.
KUCHING (June 19): Bina Puri Holdings Berhad (Bina Puri) is banking on a string of infrastructure jobs in Sarawak to stage its first financial turnaround since 2019.
According to TA Securities Bhd (TA Securities) in a note, the pandemic and movement control orders had severely impacted the company's operations especially legacy low-margin infrastructure and building contracts, of which many were forced to halt.
Management said it has since focused its efforts on completing these loss-making jobs to ease the burden on future profits.
To note, the company posted core losses of RM95 million and RM11 million in FY23 and FY24 respectively. For the first nine months of FY25, its core loss narrowed to just RM38,000.
According to management, the company did not secure any new local contracts between 2019 and late 2022.
That changed after Chai Chan Tong joined the company in December 2022, acquiring a 20.4 per cent stake and injecting RM14.8 million in fresh capital.
He later raised his stake to 23.7 per cent by subscribing to rights shares in April 2023 and took full control of the board following his redesignation as managing director in October 2023.
Under Chai, turnaround momentum picked up, with the company securing two road projects in Sarawak in 2023, in Dalat and Samarahan with a combined value of RM176.5 million.
In November 2024, it won another Sarawak contract worth RM113.3 million involving water pipeline construction, civil, and structural works.
'From these job wins, it is suffice to say that the company is a strong contender in Sarawak, especially on those small public infrastructure jobs like road, bridge and waterpipe project valued at less than RM200 million,' said TA Securities.
The house added that the company is optimistic about securing RM500 million worth of new contracts each year on the back of Chai's strong network and experience in the state.
Management guided that competition for sub-contract works in Sarawak remains mild that allows the company to maintain its operating margin at a reasonable five per cent.
'Currently, the company is actively negotiating and tendering for new jobs worth RM3.8 billion in Sarawak,' added the house.
As of the first quarter of FY25, Bina Puri's outstanding order book stood at RM551 million with nearly RM230 million of that secured under the current management.
These newer jobs are expected to carry higher margins compared to the RM325 million backlog from before Chai's leadership.
Importantly, the completion of several unprofitable projects such as the Malaysian Embassy in Moscow, a dual-lane road in Southern Iraq, and the near-completion of the Nepal Supreme Court building, is expected to ease pressure on the company's earnings.
The Bangkok high-speed rail project, though far from completion, has already been sub-contracted on a fixed-sum basis to China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC) thus reducing financial exposure.
Looking ahead, TA Securities projects a turnaround in FY25 with a core profit of RM7.8 million. This is expected to grow by 69.2 per cent to RM13.2 million in FY26 and by 11.4 per cent to RM14.7 million in FY27.
All told, FY25 is seen as a critical year for Bina Puri's new management to prove its ability to complete legacy projects while securing new, higher-margin jobs especially in Sarawak to support long-term prospect.
It also advises risk-averse investors to adopt a wait-and-see approach as the company transitions under its new leadership. Bina Puri construction corporate news
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