KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 26 — Sime Darby Property Bhd expects the labour shortage issue to be resolved in the next two months, while bringing in more workers in order to escalate its progress by the end of the fourth quarter this year.

Group managing director Datuk Azmir Merican said the property developer is still facing 50 per cent labour shortage at the site presently, compared to a 60 per cent shortage in the first half of 2022 (H1 2022).

“Currently, we see 20 to 30 per cent delay in our projects but we managed to hand over five of our projects on time in H1 2022,” he said in a virtual media briefing on the company’s H1 2022 financial results ended June 30, 2022 today.

He was also optimistic on Sime Darby Property’s capability in delivering another seven projects by the end of this year.

“This is something we would work closely with our sub contractors as we cannot do it alone. Hence, we are finding ways and pushing very hard to get workers in as this is our top priority,” he said.

He said the group is working closely with the sub contractors to ensure they have adequate workers to complete its projects.

Overall, he said the outlook for the industry has been reasonably good in the current situation as buyers would tend to buy property from reputable developers that could deliver quality products and complete the property on time.

Azmir also said the group is on track to achieve the balance of RM1.3 billion in gross development value (GDV) from a total of RM2.8 billion for 2022.

Of the total GDV, he said RM1.5 billion worth of products were launched in H1 2022, garnering a 94 per cent average take-up rate for residential properties excluding statutory products as of Aug 7.

He said residential sales at the Battersea Power Station and Electric Boulevard in the United Kingdom were valued at £184 million in H1 2022, while commercial spaces were set for opening in H2 2022 with 70 renowned tenants.

The property developer’s net profit for the second quarter ended June 30, 2022 (Q2 2022) jumped to RM105.0 million from RM23.21 million a year ago, driven by its steady product launches throughout the pandemic period which registered commendable take-up rates.

Revenue for the quarter under review rose 22.6 per cent to RM615.61 million from RM501.97 million previously, contributed by strong development site progress at its major townships from June onwards as well as sales of products with higher margins.

The group’s net profit for H1 2022 rose to RM156.56 million from RM89.31 million previously, while revenue increased to RM1.096 billion from RM1.091 billion a year ago. — Bernama