MANILA, Philippines?Publicly listed Semirara Mining Corp. posted a net income of P1.81 billion in 2009, more than double of the P796.4-million profit in 2008.

In a filing with the Philippine Stock Exchange, Semirara said the improved net income was due to a 35-percent increase in total revenue to P11.5 billion in 2009 from P8.49 billion in 2008.

According to Semirara, its revenue was boosted largely by high coal prices and a healthy sales volume.

?High coal prices towards the end of 2008 spilled over in the first half of 2009. As a result, the company?s composite average FOB price remained strong during the year. The company?s coal price already started picking up to become at par with the global market,? it explained.

The introduction of Semirara coal to a more diverse market has allowed the company to enjoy a fair price for its product.

Coal production also jumped by 40 percent to 4.85 million metric tons (MT) in 2009 from 3.47 million MT in 2008.

?The slight 5-percent drop in local sales at 2.2 million MT (in 2009) from 2.32 million MT in 2008 was compensated by export sales which more than doubled to 2.26 million MT (last year) from 992,749 MT in 2008,? the company said.