This year, it plans to earn revenue of VND16.5 trillion and profit after tax of VND800 billion.— Photo cafef.vn

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Construction firm Cotecons JSC plans to earn US$1 billion next year, Chairman and CEO of the firm Nguyen Ba Duong said at the annual shareholders meeting on Tuesday.

Based in HCM City, Cotecons is one of the leading constructors and designers of infrastructure and real estate projects in the country, with charter capital of VND800 billion ($35.5 million).

In 2015, Cotecons achieved consolidated sales of VND13.6 trillion and profit after tax of VND666 billion, an increase of 79 per cent and 103 per cent over 2014, respectively. In the first quarter of 2016, the company achieved revenue growth of 97 per cent over the same period last year.

This year, it plans to earn revenue of VND16.5 trillion and profit after tax of VND800 billion.

Chairman Duong said the construction business was still at great risk due to volatilities in the real estate market. To ensure sustainable development in the future, the company must diversify into other sectors, he said.

The chairman set a target of getting 50 per cent of its business from the construction segment, with the remaining 50 per cent coming from other businesses. In 2017, Cotecons targets earning $1 billion in revenue through the expansion of the business via mergers and acquisitions and by building new subsidiaries.

To meet the target, Duong said, Cotecons would raise between VND1.5 trillion and VND1.8 trillion to expand production.

Under the plan, the company is expected to issue 16.4 million additional shares to existing shareholders, at a ratio of 3:1.

The firm plans to offer 14.43 million shares to its strategic partners at a price of at least as much as 80 per cent of the average reference price on the local market up to 20 days from the release of the offer.

The chairman also said the company would issue 2.4 million employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) shares, or 5 per cent of the stake, to the employees in the 2014 and 2015 period at VND42,000 and VND70,000 per share respectively. — VNS