Highway firm Bright Focus proposes RM200m IPO
By Shahriman Johari
ashahriman@nstp.com.my

March 19 2007

BRIGHT Focus Sdn Bhd, a unit of Maju Holdings Sdn Bhd, plans to raise more than RM200 million from the sale of new shares in an initial public offering (IPO) this year, a source said.

right Focus, which is building a RM1.4 billion highway linking Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and the KL International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang, has hired Kenanga Investment Bank to arrange the main board IPO.

The company's IPO has been approved by the Securities Commission and the listing will come under the infrastructure segment, which requires no profit track record.

Bright Focus' listing will be one of the biggest for the local stock exchange this year. The market has had a sluggish start to IPOs despite an early rally that pushed it to a 13-year high recently.

The company plans to offer some 104 million shares under its IPO and the bulk of it, or 72 per cent, will be offered to institutional investors. Retail investors will get the rest.

"The highway is almost finished and they plan to start toll collection in 2008," the source said.

The highway link will initially connect Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.

Bright Focus holds a controlling 51 per cent in Konsortium Lapangan Terjaya Sdn Bhd (KLT), which has the concession to build and manage the highway for 33 years.

Anson Perdana Bhd holds 30 per cent of the group, while Hi-Summit Construction Sdn Bhd has the remaining 19 per cent stake, according to previous reports.

Construction of the highway is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year, Tihana Yon, senior manager of corporate communications for KLT, told Business Times.

Officials of Maju Holdings did not return calls to comment.

The highway will connect the Middle Ring Road 1 at Jalan Tun Razak in Kuala Lumpur with the Middle Ring Road 2 at the Kesas Highway, KLT said on its website.

It will also be a traffic dispersal link, relieving traffic congestion along the Kuala Lumpur-Seremban Highway at Jalan Tun Razak.