First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPH) saw its net profit in the first semester fell by 26% to P3.5 billion as the pandemic pulled down its income from operations.
In a regulatory filing, the Lopez-led holding company saw its topline falter by 21% to P53.9 billion on reduced power and real estate sales.
The company incurred one-off losses due to coronavirus pandemic-related expenses, which reached P235 million. Excluding these, its recurring net income in the period stood at P10.2 billion, lower by 21% from over a year ago.
FPH’s electricity sales declined by 18% to P10.4 billion on lower revenues from First Gen Corp.’s natural gas plants, hydro platform, and geothermal unit.
The power company in a separate disclosure said its recurring attributable profit dwindled by 15% to P6.7 billion in the first half of the year as the decline in power demand worsened in the second quarter when the economy entered into recession.
Its total revenues from power sales fell by 15% to P47.7 billion in the January-June period. First Gen’s natural gas plants delivered P4.5 billion to the holding firm’s recurring revenues, down 16% as it continues to suffer from low electricity sales in the second quarter. Making up 61% of their parent’s revenues, the gas plants posted a 17% drop in earnings due to lower average natural gas prices and a decline in their dispatch.
Energy Development Corp. posted a slightly lower earnings’ share of P2.4 billion because of a slump in revenues from lower electricity prices. It netted P2.4 billion in revenues, forming 36% of First Gen’s topline.
Its hydro platform, First Gen Hydro Power Corp., brought in P200 million, a 68% share decline, due to lower prices at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM). Its revenues, which account for 2% of its parent’s earnings, plunged by 47% to P900 million on poor spot market sales.
Meanwhile, FPH’s real estate sales dropped by over half, or 52%, to P2.2 billion because of the combined reduced sales take-up and slow construction completion of Rockwell Land Corp. following quarantine restrictions.
It also earned 23% less from contracts and services, which stood at P3.2 billion, because of the slowdown in construction activities and drilling services of First Balfour, Inc. and ThermaPrime Drilling Corp., as well as the reduced lease revenues of Rockwell’s commercial spaces due to rent concessions.
Merchandise sale earnings dropped by 26% to P805 million as First Philippine Electric Corp. sold fewer electrical transformers after its plant went on a shutdown.
On Friday, shares in FPH inched up 0.25% to close at P59.15 each, while First Gen’s shares declined by 3.83% to close at P22.60 apiece. — Adam J. Ang
