From January to April this year, the order amount for urban maintenance projects by the top 10 construction companies increased compared to last year, with Samsung C&T accounting for over one-third of the total.
According to the real estate industry on the 11th, the order amount for maintenance projects from the top 10 construction companies (based on construction capability assessment) reached 14.7122 trillion won from January to April this year.
This amount exceeds half of last year's annual order amount (27.8702 trillion won).
This is largely due to the fact that large projects with a budget of over 1 trillion won have been continuously selecting construction companies since the beginning of the year. Starting with the Hanam District 4 redevelopment (1.5695 trillion won), projects such as Seongnam Banknong Apartment reconstruction (1.2972 trillion won), Jangwi District 8 public redevelopment (1.1945 trillion won), and Seocho Sinbanpo 4th reconstruction (1.0310 trillion won) sought constructors from January to April this year.
By company, Samsung C&T had the largest order amount at 5.0213 trillion won, followed by Lotte Construction at 2.5354 trillion won, GS Engineering and Construction at 2.1949 trillion won, POSCO E&C at 1.4532 trillion won, Hyundai E&C at 1.4282 trillion won, DL E&C at 0.9246 trillion won, HDC Hyundai Development Company at 0.8565 trillion won, and Daewoo E&C at 0.2981 trillion won.
With just the order amounts from Samsung C&T and Lotte Construction, they accounted for more than half of the total order amounts from the top 10 construction companies.
Samsung C&T's order amount accounted for more than 34% of the total. Last year, Samsung C&T only secured a 13.1% share of the top 10 construction companies' order amounts, but this year it has surpassed its urban maintenance project order target (5 trillion won).
Lotte Construction also exceeded last year's annual order amount (1.9571 trillion won). The concentration of orders in the first quarter of this year, due to delays in the approval process for the associations, has been analyzed as the main reason.
Daewoo E&C secured its first maintenance project this year by being selected as the construction company for the Gunpo District 1 redevelopment project last month. Hyundai Engineering and SK Ecoplant have yet to secure any orders this year.
Hyundai E&C, which had a 21.7% share of the total order amount last year, is currently below 10% in the order share of the top 10 construction companies from January to April this year.
Industry analysts suggest that the increase in orders for Samsung C&T is a result of its shift towards expanding orders after being inactive in maintenance projects for a while, coupled with consumer preference for the "Raemian" housing brand.
There are also opinions that Samsung C&T has turned its eyes towards maintenance projects, which ensure revenue stability, as the volume of orders from group companies has decreased due to economic recession and domestic and international uncertainties.
There are forecasts that competition for maintenance project orders among the top 10 construction companies will become even more intense in the future.
An industry official noted, "Major maintenance projects in areas such as Apgujeong, Yeouido, and Seongsu-dong are expected to emerge one after another in the second half of the year," adding, "These sites are not only profitable but also symbolic, so fierce competition among construction companies is likely to take place."