KUCHING: Pansar Bhd’s outstanding order book of more than RM1.2 billion can sustain the company even in the event of an economic downturn for the next few years, said its chairman Dato Sri James Tai Cheong.
He said some of the notable infrastructure projects that Pansar is currently implementing include Unimas Teaching Hospital in Kota Samarahan, Batang Lupar 1 Bridge (Malaysia’s longest riverine bridge) in Samarahan Division, mechanical & engineering (M&E) for the Shell headquarters in Miri and the retrofitting of the STIDC building in Kuching.
He said these projects have a total order book value of RM1.4 billion.
Pansar, which acquired construction and civil engineering firm Perbena Emas Sdn Bhd for RM151 million last year, is eyeing more government infrastructure projects.
“The Sarawak government’s Post COVID Development Strategy towards 2030 (PCDS 2030) has already listed numerous infrastructure projects which we aim to be a part of. This include the second trunk road, coastal road upgrades, water grid programmes, rural electrification project, telecommunications infrastructure and the road linkage to villages,” said Tai in the company’s 2022 annual report.
In the company’s management discussion and analysis report, Pansar said Perbena Emas experienced a challenging year under review due to restricted movement and lockdowns caused by COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in the subsidiary unable to recognise project revenue as planned.
Adding to the challenges was the supply chain disruption and manpower shortages.
“Despite all these, the construction and infrastructure division still manage to report revenue of RM229.7 million and was the largest revenue contributor to the group, accounting for 38.2 per cent.
“We expect the outlook for the construction and engineering industry to remain challenging because of the continuous labour shortages and volatile inflationary measures. We will focus on cost management and project implementation for our outstanding order book of over RM1.2 billion,” added the company.
Tai said the war in Ukraine and growing inflation created renewed uncertainty and exacerbated an already confusing situation.
“Globally, we expect recessionary pressures to increase, with escalation of geopolitical conflicts, disruption in the supply chain and unpredictability in the financial markets. We are hopeful that we would be able to weather the downturn, thanks to the easing of restrictions, re-opening of international borders and implementation of investment projects, GDP growth in Malaysia is projected to grow by 5.3 per cent to 6.3 per cent as announced (by the authorities) in March 2022.
“Since our founding in 1961, we have weathered many economic crises. Amongst them are the oil crisis of 1973, the Asian financial crisis of 1997, COVID-19 and now the outbreak of Russia-Ukraine war.
“No matter the economic circumstances, the company must continue to grow sustainably, even through tough times. We know from experience that time and trends will continue moving with or without our participation. Hence, we are always preparing for future opportunities by moving forward one step at a time,” he added.
Moving forward, Tai said Pansar has always followed a growth strategy based on a longer term outlook.
In financial year ended March 31,2022 (FY2022), Pansar posted a record group revenue of RM601.6 million, a 97.9 per cent increase from RM304 million in FY2021.
The growth was supported by improved performance from all its business segments.
Despite the sharp growth in revenue, Pansar group’s net profit fell to RM700,000 from RM10.8 million in FY2021.
The net profit for the current financial year included one-off non-cash fair value loss on quoted equity investment of RM6.3 million and amortisation charges on intangible assets arising from acquisition of subsidiary of RM3.4 million.
Besides construction and infrastructure, the group business segments include marine & industrial, building & construction materials, agro engineering, electrical & air conditioning, heavy equipment as well as mechanical & electrical .
