PNOC Exploration says first half net rose 52%

The oil and gas exploration arm of Philippine National Oil Co. reported a net income of P1.522 billion in the first half of the year, up 52.4 percent from a year earlier. In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), PNOC Exploration said higher earnings from the Malampaya Deepwater Gas-to-Power Project and its commercial port operations in Mabini, Batangas bolstered its first semester results. The company said its net income for the period represents 31.3 percent of total revenues, compared to only 22.1 percent in the year earlier period. Revenues, meanwhile, rose by 7.5 percent to P4.86 billion due to higher revenues from its three major business units. Compared to its revenue grow, PNOC Exploration’s cost of sales went down by 18.4 percent to only P2.387 billion due to the lower volume of coal sold. The company derives most of its revenues from the Malampaya project in Northwest Palawan, where it has a 10-percent controlling stake. PNOC Exploration also generates revenues from coal trading and the logistics operations of its supply base. The company's Batangas port, called the Energy Supply Base, provides pier, warehousing and other related services, and has accommodated some 126 domestic vessels and 33 foreign vessels as of end-June. PNOC Exploration, whose shares are 99.79 percent owned by the government through PNOC, has a mandate to explore for oil and gas and other energy resources. The remaining 0.21 percent of its shares are held by public shareholders. The company had already asked guidance from the government's economic managers on whether to pursue a secondary offering to comply with the 10-percent listing requirement of the Philippine Stock Exchange. —JMT/VS, GMA News