EcoWorld president and chief executive officer Datuk Chang Khim Wah.
PETALING JAYA: Eco World Development Group Bhd
(EcoWorld) will be focusing on strengthening its revenue generators and enhancing value creation across all developments this year.
Among the property developer’s key plans include landbank expansion, said president and chief executive officer Datuk Chang Khim Wah.
“We will continue acquiring strategic land parcels, deploying our strong balance sheet and historic low net gearing of only 0.19 times as at Oct 31, 2024 to expand our project pipeline,” he told StarBiz.
Chang said the group’s recent acquisitions include 240 acres for the development of Eco Botanic 3 (Johor), 8.9 acres next to Eco Sanctuary (near Kota Kemuning, Shah Alam) and 847 acres immediately adjacent to Eco Forest (Semenyih).
“This ensures economies of scale and builds on our established brand presence in these regions, with positive spillover benefits for both our new as well as existing developments,” he said.
Going forward, Chang said EcoWorld will also look to meet growing demand for industrial properties.
“With sustained interest from global and regional industrialists, we plan to expand our Eco Business Parks and Quantum offerings.
“The recent signing of a memorandum of understanding to jointly develop a 1,166-acre industrial park in Bukit Pelandok, Negri Sembilan with SD Guthrie Bhd and NS Corp will give us the opportunity to explore the expansion of our industrial development presence into a new state and the Malaysian Vision Valley 2.0 economic corridor.”
Chang said the planned industrial park is tailored to meet the needs of industrialists in high-growth sectors, including those in the aerospace, electrical and electronics, logistics and biotechnology industries.
Additionally, he said the company will focus on strengthening its recurring income.
“We’re focused on growing our portfolio of investment properties and will be exploring opportunities to make strategic investments in both the commercial as well as industrial space, to provide the group with steady rental income and long-term asset value appreciation.”
Moreover, Chang said EcoWorld will strive to enhance community appeal with its developments.
“Exciting new developments, like the Tuah 1895 food and lifestyle hub, the Immersify Kuala Lumpur multi-dimensional media art gallery (both at the Bukit Bintang City Centre or BBCC, in the heart of Kuala Lumpur) and Majestic Labs (in Semeyih), will enrich the lifestyle offerings at our projects and attract more businesses, residents and visitors.
“With these initiatives, we aim to not only sustain our growth momentum but also position EcoWorld as a leader in delivering high-quality, sustainable developments that cater to the evolving needs of customers from every market segment,” said Chang.
EcoWorld has five “revenue pillars”, namely, Eco Townships (landed homes), Eco Rise (high-rise), Eco Hubs (strata offices and retail spaces) and Eco Business Parks (industrial parks) and Quantum (data centres, digital and high-technology ventures).
For the financial year ended Oct 31, 2024 (FY24), EcoWorld’s net profit jumped 60.3% year-on-year to RM303.5mil, while revenue grew 1.4% to RM2.26bil, which was primarily due to higher contributions from active and newly launched phases during the financial year.
Chang said the group’s stellar FY24 performance was a culmination of years of focused effort and strategic execution.
“We’ve worked hard to create value at every development, which has strengthened our pricing power and improved our profit margins significantly.
“Having a broad range of offerings across three key market segments, namely, residential, commercial and industrial, has allowed us to serve diverse market needs.”
Chang said the strength of the group’s presence in Iskandar Malaysia, Johor, where its brand first emerged back in 2013, was a real game-changer for FY24.
“All five of our revenue pillars are represented here, which enabled us to secure RM2.33bil sales from this region alone, representing 57% of total group sales.”
He added that EcoWorld’s duduk apartments under the Eco Rise pillar had also struck a chord with urban homebuyers.
“As a result, sales under the Eco Rise pillar recorded the highest growth in FY24 with RM1.08bil achieved, more than double the RM509mil recorded in FY23.”
Chang said more than 2,200 duduk units were sold in FY24, contributing RM900mil and representing 83% of total Eco Rise sales. “This is testament to the success of our duduk apartments in capturing the hearts and minds of a cross-generational group of urban homebuyers.”
Chang said EcoWorld remained optimistic about maintaining this performance in FY25.
“We’re entering FY25 with a healthy future revenue pipeline of RM3.96bil, so our earnings and cash flow are well-supported. We’ve also been actively expanding our land bank to strengthen our market position, especially for residential and industrial products where demand remains strong.”
Separately, Chang said EcoWorld also plans to expand its portfolio of recurring income assets.
“Our acquisition of 108 strata office units at Menara EcoWorld at BBCC is a step towards building a steady income stream while enhancing our presence in prime locations.”
Chang also said he sees tremendous potential in the industrial sector, adding that the group’s Eco Business Parks (EBPs) have been a key growth driver for EcoWorld.
“In FY24, sales from our industrial pillars, including EBP and Quantum, reached RM1.11bil, a 6% increase from the previous year. This growth was bolstered by high demand not just for data centre facilities but also from traditional manufacturers, both local and foreign.”
Moving forward, Chang said EcoWorld plans to build on this momentum by expanding its land bank to meet the increasing demand for industrial spaces.
“We’re targeting strategic locations to cater to local, regional and global industrialists, particularly those seeking ready-built, built-to-suit or smaller industrial plots.
“We also aim to leverage the strong network of over 1,400 businesses currently operating in our business parks, which generates consistent inquiries and referrals. This positions us well to capture future demand and drive further growth in the industrial segment.”
