KUALA LUMPUR (May 28): Information communication technology (ICT) player Privasia Technology Bhd’s wholly owned subsidiary IPSAT Sdn Bhd plans to invest approximately RM3 million to set up a satellite hub in Cyberjaya.

The hub, according to Privasia, will be used to target more clients from the oil and gas sector, and it will be supported by Hughes Network Services LLC, a global leader in broadband satellite services and solutions.

Privasia chief executive officer and managing director Puvanesan Subenthiran said that the new in-house satellite hub is slated for completion in mid 2015, and will allow the group to extend the range of its services to existing and future customers.

“At the same [time], it gives us the opportunity to pursue regional potential in South East Asia as well,” he said in a statement today.

He added that the group intends to make positive headway into the domestic telecommunications sector, by providing engineering services to mobile operators.

“With these growth drivers, we are optimistic of our prospects in the current financial year,” said Puvanesan.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, Privasia recorded a net profit of RM1.26 million, or 0.22 sen per share for its first quarter ended March 31, 2015 (1QFY15), 7.5% lower than its net profit of RM1.36 million or 0.24 sen in the same quarter a year ago, due to higher operating expenditure to necessitate the group’s expansion into the satellite business.

Revenue for the group had increased by 54.9% to RM21.28 million in 1QFY15 from RM13.74 million in 1QFY14, on the back of an encouraging sales mix mainly attributable to growth in the group’s outsourcing and consulting segment (OSD), ICT services and ICT distribution segments.

The Group’s OSD order book currently stands at RM141 million lasting till 2020.

Puvanesan said that the investments made by the group were necessary building blocks to get the business into a higher gear.

“With the healthy prospects of the domestic and regional economies, we are buoyant of our future prospects,” he said.

Privasia (fundamental: 1.8; valuation: 1.1) shares were unchanged at 33 sen in the morning trade, with 3.79 million shares changing hands and a market capitalisation of RM184.21 million.

(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)