San Miguel Corp. reports strong 2012 results

SMC president Ramon S. Ang. AP FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—San Miguel Corp.’s consolidated net profits surged 57 percent to P27.6 billion ($677.55 million) last year, boosted by strong turnover from new businesses, the top Philippine conglomerate said Thursday.

Huge investments in oil refining and distribution as well as power generation were the major drivers, while its older beverage, food and packaging businesses posted weaker growth, San Miguel president Ramon Ang said.

“Our performance over the last 12 months points to the strategic value of our growing portfolio,” he said in a statement.

“Despite the many challenges of the previous year, our core businesses continued to show marked and sustained improvement, while our new businesses, as intended, have added scale, stability, and robust revenue streams.”

San Miguel has been aggressively branching out into new ventures like oil refining, aviation, toll road operations, and power generation to beef up its core businesses that includes a brewery that is now in its 123rd year.

Turnover rose 30 percent from a year earlier to P698.9 billion, with revenues from new businesses accounting for more than 70 percent of the total, Ang said.

The difference in revenue growth between old and new was stark, with new businesses rising at a 46 percent pace while older businesses grew only 4.0 percent, company figures show.

Among San Miguel’s major new units, oil refiner Petron Corp. was the major booster in terms of turnover, with revenues rising 55 percent from a year earlier to P424.79 billion.

Ang said this was driven by the consolidation of its oil refining and retailing businesses in Malaysia that were acquired from US giant ExxonMobil.