At least $8 billion in contracts has yet to be awarded for the construction of the Changi Airport T5 main terminal buildings, according to Ong and Then. This will be split into three packages.
“While the main contractor roles are likely to be awarded to overseas players (primarily Chinese and Japanese), we expect substantial downstream work — including ready-mix concrete, steel rebars, building equipment supplies as well as mechanical and electrical engineering (M&E) and interior fit-out works — to be subcontracted to local players,” add the analysts.
To date, the Changi Airport Development Fund has been largely funded by the Ministry of Finance, which has contributed $11 billion since 2015.
“Looking ahead, we expect additional funding to be required as construction costs continue to rise, likely via further MOF injections and incremental borrowings by Changi Airport Group,” say Ong and Then.
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Meanwhile, Las Vegas Sands estimates the design and construction of MBS IR2 to cost US$4.7 billion ($5.98 billion). Excluding foundation works, the majority of the contracts for MBS IR2 have not been awarded.
“We estimate there is $5.5 billion in contracts for substructure and superstructure works for MBS IR2 up for grabs,” add the analysts.
Top picks
With this, Ong and Then stay “overweight” on the construction sector, expecting the Singapore construction upcycle to extend into 2029. CGSI expects Singapore-listed names under its coverage to deliver earnings per share (EPS) growth of 16%-41% and return on equity of 16%-24% over 2026 to 2028.
Ong and Then’s top picks in the sector are Sanli Environmental, with a 47-cent target price; Soilbuild Construction Group, with a $1.20 target price; and Tiong Woon Corporation, with a $1.23 target price.
As an M&E player specialising in water and waste management projects, Sanli Environmental has a record $781.5 million outstanding order book to be fulfilled over five years, supported by major contract wins from the Land Transport Authority and Public Utilities Board.
Meanwhile, Soilbuild Construction is an industrial building main contractor with an order book at $1.19 billion as of 1H2025, now mainly supported by the $647.5 million PSA Supply Chain Hub.
“We expect further margin expansion from operating leverage as well as strong order wins from internal industrial projects and BuildTo-Order (BTO) precast to support double-digit EPS growth in 2026/2027,” write the CGSI analysts.
Despite Sanli and Soilbuild’s share price rallies over the past year, CGSI sees further upside and believes the market “has not fully priced in their strong execution track records and earnings visibility from their current order books”.
Finally, crane Tiong Woon is one of the world’s 20 biggest heavy-lifting crane operators. Its competitive advantage is in heavy‑tonnage lifts of up to 2,200 tonnes. CGSI believes it is a beneficiary of construction- and infrastructure-focused nation-building plans implemented by many Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern countries.
