Hua Yang to develop RM1bil projects

KUALA LUMPUR: Hua Yang Bhd aims to develop various property projects in Malaysia with a total gross development value (GDV) of RM1.1bil over the next eight years.

Chief operating officer Ho Wen Yan said the company would focus on developing residential, commercial and light industrial factory projects, particularly in Perak, Johor, Seremban and the Klang Valley.

“We will fund most of these projects from our internal cashflow and our bank partners are also supportive,” he told reporters after a briefing on the company’s performance yesterday.

He said the company planned to launch a mixed development project on 17.89 acres in Sungai Besi, with a GDV of RM700mil, in the second half next year.

The company was in acquisition mode and was looking for landbank in Selangor as well as in other states, Ho said, adding that 80% of its development was currently residential.

“We are exploring business opportunities in east Malaysia currently and hope to expand there in the next three to five years as the market is growing,” he said.

The company was targeting to acquire smaller plots in Kuala Lumpur and was looking at land of between 150 and 300 acres outside the Klang Valley, he added.

The company currently holds about 1,000 acres of undeveloped landbank, which could potentially generate more than RM1.8bil in GDV.

“We want to focus on the middle-income market to provide affordable housing in the next three to five years,” he said, adding that the company was not discounting the possibility of venturing into the high-end market going forward.

Ho said the company had predicted single-digit growth in revenue and net profit in the financial year ending March 31 (FY09) and FY10.

“We are optimistic as demand for affordable houses is still encouraging,” he said.

In FY08, the company registered net profit of RM6.72mil on revenue of RM59.94mil.

Ho said the cost of materials this year was 10% higher than last year.

“We have and will continue to re-value and re-engineer all our buildings and re-design some of the building structures to reduce costs but will maintain quality,” he said, adding that the company had not delayed any of its launches amid the global economic slowdown.

By The Star (by Lee Kian Seong)