Hock Seng Lee grows in size

HSL to see further growth and procurement success for new projects

Posted on November 30, 2012, Friday

KUCHING: Sarawak-based infrastructure company Hock Seng Lee Bhd (HSL) is set to enjoy further growth and procurement success based on the group records earnings for the third quarter of the financial year 2012 (3QFY12) while it rakes in more new projects.

In a press release, director Dato Paul Yu Chee Hoe said, “Net profit before tax for the nine months up to September 30 2012 was RM86.53 million up six per cent from the RM81.64 million achieved over the same period of 2011.”

Meanwhile revenue rose some five per cent for the January to September 2012 period to RM443.16 million from RM422.93 million for the same period in 2011.

Additionally, HSL reported RM30.39 million net profit before tax for 3QFY12, up marginally from the RM30.16 million recorded for 3QFY11 while revenue for the quarter under review was RM152.24 million, an increase of one per cent against the preceding year corresponding quarter’s figure of RM150.42 million.

Boosting HSL’s growth, some RM525 million worth of new projects had been added during 2012 to date while RM375 million worth had been completed.

HSL secured RM313 million worth of new projects in 2011, while it currently had RM1.9 billion worth of projects in hand with an outstanding value of RM1.1 billion, he added.

The most recent additions to the order book included the RM291 million new campus for UITM Mukah and Senibong secondary school, a construction sub-contract worth RM39.5 million.

“Our strength in our core business areas of marine engineering and infrastructure works provides us a competitive edge in pursuing contracts in Sarawak,” said Yu.

He added, “Moreover, our sound financial position with no borrowings and a RM177 million cash pile as at the end of the nine-month reporting period, places the group in an advantageous position when structuring project proposals where financing or land-swap deals may be involved.

“This is particularly the case when bidding for urgent public construction works whereby upfront available funding may be short.”

Currently, HSL’s largest on-hand project remains the 75 per cent completed Kuching City Centralised Wastewater Management project (Package 1) which is being undertaken by way of hi-tech tunnelling.

The Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) which included an Inlet Pumping Station, Headworks, an Activated Sludge Reactor, Secondary Clarifier and wetlands, was recently completed and had hosted numerous visitors.

The Sarawak Minister for Infrastructure and Communications, Datuk Seri Michael Manyin Jawong emphasised the importance of the project in alleviating the serious pollution of local rivers which currently absorbed some 175 million litres of Kuching’s untreated dirty wastewater every day and he called on the public to be co-operative as the contractor entered the individual property connections phase.

Looking ahead, HSL anticipates further contributions to safeguard the future health of Kuching by bidding for Phase 2 of this essential centralised sewerage project.