KUALA LUMPUR (May 30): Iris Corp Bhd has been awarded a contract worth RM346.19 million for the supply of a new system for the production of the national biometric identity and voters card from the government of Senegal.

In a bourse filing today, Iris said it has entered into a contract with the Ministry of Interior and Public Security (MOI) of the Republic of Senegal, a West African country, on May 2 for the production and supply of 10 million new multi-application identity biometric cards, based on contactless chip technology, and 10 fingerprint biometry for a total contract price of €76.2 million (equivalent to RM346.19 million).

The contract period is for five years. "MOI's consent or approval was duly received by ICB (Iris) on the evening of May 27," it added.

Iris said the implementation of the contract will be funded by internally generated funds and further financing if required.

The contract is expected to contribute positively to its earnings for the financial year ending March 31, 2017 (FY17) and the financial years thereafter for the duration of the contract.

Senegal has an estimated population of about 13 million.

Meanwhile, Iris has returned to black in its fourth quarter ended March 31, 2016 (4QFY16) with a net profit of RM1.79 million, on better margins and lower operating expenses. It recorded a net loss of RM26.34 million in 4QFY15.

Revenue, however, fell 14.4% to RM107.75 million from RM125.88 million.

Iris is also back to profitability for the full year ended March 31 (FY16), with a net income of RM6.32 million from a net loss of RM20.89 million a year earlier, mainly due to better margins derived under the trusted identification division on its projects overseas and lower operating expenses.

Revenue, however, declined 8.25% to RM479.23 million from RM522.33 million in FY15.

Iris shares closed unchanged at 15.5 sen today for a market capitalisation of RM346.06 million.