KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 14): Varia Bhd (KL:VARIA) said on Wednesday it had secured a construction subcontract worth RM61.45 million.

The contract was awarded to Varia’s wholly owned subsidiary Pembinaan Teguh Maju Sdn Bhd by Kemuncak Pesaka Sdn Bhd, an entity which Varia independent non-executive director Datuk Wira Roslan Ab Rahman holds common directorship at.

The contract involves construction of main building works and external works of the Sultan Azlan Shah Campus, owned by the Sultan Idris Education University, in Tanjong Malim, Perak.

The job spans 31 months, and is expected to commence from Aug 19, 2024 and complete by March 31, 2027, Varia said.

Varia added that the job is expected to contribute positively to earnings of the group for the relevant financial periods.

The new contract lifted Varia’s total order wins for 2024 to RM714.8 million.

At Wednesday's noon closing, shares in Varia surged as much as 10.5 sen or 11.2% to RM1.04, giving the stock a market capitalisation of RM442 million. The counter was the top nine gainer across Bursa Malaysia.

The counter was also more active than usual, with a trading volume of 638,000 shares, nearly 2.5 times the 20-day moving average.

Earlier in July, Varia shares saw abnormal trading interest of nearly 15 times their 20-day moving average volume, after the company said it had bagged a Penang sewage treatment plant subcontract job worth RM555 million.