PROPERTY developer Ireka Corp Bhd IREKA is well-positioned to emerge as a pioneer of affordable and mixed housing in Terengganu.
With the vision to drive economic recovery for the state, the Terengganu state government has awarded Ireka’s wholly owned subsidiary Ireka Development (Terengganu) Sdn Bhd (IDTSB) development projects with an estimated gross development value (GDV) of RM468 mil.
A filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday (Dec 7) indicated that these projects comprised affordable and mixed housing developments in both Bandar Kerteh Jaya (Kertih) and Kampung Semayor (Kemasik). IDTSB will be the developer for the two projects.
The bulk of the development will focus on affordable housing with 90% of the homes being built priced at below RM300,000.
The development which is expected to be completed in six years under four phases will be undertaken in two separate land plots of 200 acres (Bandar Kerteh Jaya) and 11.55 acres (Kampung Semayor) respectively.
“This is one area that the group will continue to focus on as we believe the collaboration with Terengganu will put us on a stronger footing in the affordable housing space,” envisages Ireka’s managing director Mohd Hasnul Ismar Mohd Ismail.
“The mismatch of housing affordability and availability remains a serious issue in Malaysia but we are confident we can meet the demand in this area.”
According to Mohd Hasnul, the proposed development will also drive earnings recovery for Ireka by providing earnings visibility for its property development segment for the next six years.
He further noted that the new management team has taken aggressive measures to secure more jobs in order to drive Ireka’s turnaround strategy. Over the past five months, the team has grown the company’s order book from RM470 mil to RM1.3 bil by securing more than RM800 mil in construction jobs.
Both IREKA and the Terengganu state government are confident that the proposed development will help to drive the state’s economic recovery as the development involves the allocation of works to local contractors.
“These proposed developments will generate jobs and opportunities in Terengganu with about RM120 mil in development value being awarded to local contractors,” projected Mohd Hasnul.
“They are also expected to generate employment opportunities for workers in the state. The projects will also contribute RM34.7 mil in development funding to the Terengganu State Government.”
At the close of yesterday’s (Dec 8) trading, Ireka was up 2 sen or 3.08% to 67 sen with 7.45 million shares traded, thus valuing the company at RM153 mil. – Dec 8, 2021
