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CONSTRUCTION
NAREERAT WIRIYAPONG
Ascon Construction Plc, a SET-listed construction company, is close to winning its first overseas project by clinching a 16-billion-baht deal to build 12-storey residential towers in Dubai.
Chief executive Pattanapong Tanumathaya said the construction contract was expected to be awarded by next month. Beginning in October, the construction is due to be completed in 30 months.
The contract, part of a 100-billion-baht complex, is for the construction of 20 towers in the first phase of the whole project, which comprises almost 200 buildings, Mr Pattanapong said.
Ascon has established a wholly owned branch in Dubai to bid for the project. The subsidiary will also seek other construction projects in nearby areas such as Abu Dhabi, he said.
Almost 5,000 construction workers are being recruited for the Dubai project, mainly from India, Pakistan, and Nepal, he added.
''We have put a lot of efforts into building our profile overseas to minimise risks of concentrating only on local works as in the past,'' he said.
Apart from the Middle East, Ascon has also explored business opportunities in neighbouring countries such as Cambodia and Vietnam, he added.
Mr Pattanapong said the company had also been in talks with a potential local partner in Abu Dhabi, which had expressed its interest through a letter of intent to acquire a stake of Ascon, a move the company welcomed.
The Thai company has therefore appointed a consultant to conduct due diligence on its share value.
''The new partner would help strengthen our financial status by injecting fresh funds to be used as working capital for future projects,'' he said.
Locally, Ascon is looking forward to bidding for the construction contracts of the government's planned nine mass-transit rail lines in Greater Bangkok. The contractor has joined the bidding this month for a contract worth 6.5 billion baht to build a depot for the Purple Line.
Next year, the government is expected to call bids for five other lines, all of which Ascon would join.
He said Ascon projected total revenue of about three billion baht this year, double from last year's 1.4 billion baht. The figure was projected to top five billion baht next year.
It handles 14 projects valued at 6.3 billion baht, with a backlog of 3.9 billion baht.
Like other construction companies, Ascon has been adversely affected by sharp rises of building material prices, especially steel, as well as the increases of minimum labour wages in June.
In the quarter to June, Ascon posted a net loss of 153 million baht, against a profit of 9.6 million in the same period of 2007. Its total revenue fell 31.7% year-on-year to 262.3 million baht.
Ascon shares (ASCON) closed yesterday on the SET at 5.65 baht, unchanged, in trade worth 281,000 baht.
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