MRCB lands monorail job

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB)-led consortium, which includes Scomi Engineering Bhd and Penang Port Commission (PPC), is believed to have beaten three other bidders for the Penang monorail job, sources said.
They said MRCB was awarded the project, which analysts estimate would cost RM1.6 billion, for submitting the “most comprehensive” and “lowest priced” bid among the contenders. The consortium submitted its bid on Nov 14 last year.
The other three bidders for the monorail were MMC Bhd, the then Road Builder (M) Holdings Bhd, which has since been taken over by IJM Corporation Bhd, and the Melewar Group.
Analysts said a lot of synergy was provided by MRCB and its consortium partners, with PPC being the owner of the land on which the monorail would start from, Scomi the expertise to build the monorail coaches, and MRCB the builder of the infrastructure.
They said the Penang monorail project will be the platform for MRCB to showcase its capability when bidding for similar rail projects overseas including India. They said MRCB was also negotiating for a US$2 billion (RM6.5 billion) transport and housing development job in Saudi Arabia.
They added that the Penang Monorail project would also enable MRCB to position itself for more infrastructure projects in the various economic corridors in the country.
MRCB’s current order book is about RM2.2 billion. The RM1.6 billion monorail project and the proposed RM1.1 billion Penang Outer Ring Road project, if MRCB is able to secure, would increase its order book to RM4.9 billion.
Observers also expected MRCB, as one of the two local specialists in the installation of power transmission cables, to play a significant role in the installation of land-based transmission lines for the Bakun project.
According to a senior analyst, MRCB was one of the government-linked companies (GLCs) that had turned around “substantially” with a lot of upside expected from its property projects, infrastructure and power transmission businesses.
MRCB is also undertaking the development of the Butterworth transport hub, which is part of the Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER).
Last December, MRCB and Pelaburan Hartanah Bumiputera Bhd proposed to jointly set up Penang Sentral Sdn Bhd for the Penang Sentral project that would include the development of an Integrated Transportation Hub. It will integrate Penang’s ferry, train, intercity and intra-city bus and taxi services and a monorail station.
CIMB Equities Research has estimated MRCB’s net profit for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2007 to reach RM61.20 million from RM36.8 million in FY06. For FY08, it estimates net profit to surge to RM98.5 million and for FY09, RM126.4 million. -www.theedgedaily.com