Malaysian construction specialist Binastra Corporation Berhad announced recently that it has been awarded a RM491 million (US$ 120 million) contract to build a data center in Kuala Lumpur. The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Binastra Builders Sdn Bhd accepted the letter of award from Exsim Sri Permai Sdn Bhd, according to its Bursa Malaysia filing.
Under the contract, Binastra will commence work immediately on Phase 2 of the Cheras DC and expect to complete the seven-storey DC building and a substation within 18 months. The work covers the design, construction, and maintenance in respect of foundation, sub-structure, main building and infrastructure works.
This is the second data center contract that Binastra received from Exsim Sri Permai Sdn Bhd within the same location at Jalan Sri Permaisuri. In February, the firm secured a RM503 million (US$ 123 million) data center project in the same area. The project, Phase 1 Cheras DC, is expected to complete within 20 months from the date of commencement.
According to Binastra’s website, in 2023, the company was awarded a construction and infrastructure works project worth RM 161.3 million by Exsim Jalil Link Sdn Bhd for the proposed development of a data center. No other details were provided for the said project.
Following the Phase 2 Cheras DC deal, TA Research noted that Binastra is rapidly pivoting to high quality non-residential projects like data centers and solar EPCC (engineering, procurement, construction, and commissioning) works. TA is of the view that this would improve the firm’s earnings through faster project turnaround times.
“This reduces reliance on any single project segment while positioning the group to benefit from structural investment themes such as Malaysia’s expanding data centre ecosystem and solar renewable energy rollout. This strategic shift is a major catalyst for the company’s financial outlook. Unlike traditional high-rise residential developments, which typically require 30 to 36 months to complete, non-residential projects offer shorter construction timelines of 18 to 24 months,” TA said in its note. Binastra was building residential high-rises before undertaking increasingly more data center-related works.