KUALA LUMPUR (July 13): Construction giant IJM Corp Bhd (KL:IJM) is boldly stepping into a new era under the tutelage of group chief executive officer and managing director Lee Chun Fai, who took over the helm from construction marvel Tan Sri Krishnan Tan Boon Seng over 15 months ago.

And the changes being made on top of the strong foundation laid by Tan have not gone unnoticed. IJM’s share price reached an all-time high of RM3.47 on July 3. The counter was still up more than 80% year to date when it closed at RM3.36 last Friday, valuing the group at RM12.26 billion.

IJM’s outstanding order book is currently RM7.3 billion, with RM1.3 billion worth of contracts secured so far in the financial year ending March 31, 2025 (FY2025). Having reached RM3.7 billion in contracts last year, just shy of its revised target of RM4 billion, IJM is pushing itself with an even higher target of RM5 billion in contract replenishment in FY2025.

While the figure looks ambitious, Lee is confident of getting there. He outlines a multi-prong strategy to chart the group's next growth phase, which includes pivoting into investing in industrial assets, geographical expansion into Indonesia and the UK, as well as unlocking the value of its toll road concessions in Malaysia.

Read about what he has to say and more in the July 15, 2024 issue of The Edge Malaysia weekly. Pick up a copy at newsstands.

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