EcoWorld Malaysia's EBP VII draws early interest from MNCs: RHB Research

New Straits Times

2 days ago

KUALA LUMPUR: Eco World Development Group Bhd (EcoWorld Malaysia) is preparing to launch Eco Business Park VII (EBP VII) in Malaysia Vision Valley 2.0, Negeri Sembilan, by year-end, RHB Research said.
Citing president and chief executive officer Datuk Chang Khim Wah, the research house noted that the marketing team has already received strong interest from multinational corporations (MNCs) in China, Europe, Japan and Malaysia, particularly for smaller industrial land plots.
EBP VII is also being positioned as a potential site for future data centre development. "Given its track record in attracting big MNCs at all its EBPs, we believe the company will similarly surprise the market on its deliveries for EBP VII," RHB Research said.
Meanwhile, momentum is building at EBP V, where EcoWorld is expected to award the construction contract for its data centre within the next one to two months. The project is targeted for completion by the third quarter of 2027 (3Q27), it added.
Rental contributions are projected to begin in 4Q27. The facility will be leased to Pearl Computing Malaysia under an initial 20-year term.
RHB Research said that based on estimates, EcoWorld Malaysia's 80 per cent stake could generate annual lease income of RM100 million to RM110 million at the profit-before-tax level.
"A 20 per cent equity partner is expected to be announced in the near term."
RHB Research is bullish on EcoWorld Malaysia, maintaining a BUY call with a target price of RM3.00, representing a potential 41 per cent upside and a forecast dividend yield of around 4 per cent for the fiscal year 2026 (FY26).
Confidence in EcoWorld Malaysia's earnings trajectory and property sales outlook was reinforced during a recent corporate luncheon with Chang, who highlighted strong momentum in both industrial and residential sales – particularly within the group's projects in Iskandar Malaysia, RHB Research said.
While FY26 earnings are expected to benefit from earlier industrial land disposals, FY27 will likely be fuelled by contributions from three upcoming pipeline projects – Eco Botanic 3, EBP VII, and Eco Radiance – alongside maiden recurring income from a new data centre venture.
RHB Research said in a note that demand for EcoWorld Malaysia's maiden Eco Botanic 3 launch has been overwhelming.
It said that although management initially planned to release only Precinct 1 units, strong demand prompted the opening of Precinct 2 as well – both precincts featuring two-storey terraces starting at RM882,000 per unit.
By launch, some 1,100 ticket numbers were taken for just 700 available units, leaving the project oversubscribed by roughly 1.6 times, the research firm said.