Semirara reports strong Q1

MANILA, Philippines—Semirara Mining Corp. of the Consunji family reported a 184-percent growth in its net income to P1.68 billion in the first quarter, despite posting lower volumes of coal exported and electricity sold during the period.

According to the company, consolidated revenues dropped by 3 percent to P5.9 billion from P6.09 billion a year ago. The increase in average export prices for coal and the hike in local demand for the commodity had helped offset the decrease in energy sales.

Domestic demand for Semirara coal rose significantly by 58 percent to 1.18 million metric tons, from the 747,880 MT recorded in the first quarter of 2010. On the other hand, export demand softened as shown in the 63-percent drop in total export sales to 461,906 MT from 1.26 million MT the previous year.

The hike in local sales could be attributed to the increase in purchases by the power industry, which served as the biggest single consumer of Semirara coal. In particular, the commissioning of new coal-fired power plants in the Visayas also boosted sales as the company had also entered into long-term supply contracts with them.

Semirara’s other customers, including the cement and industrial plants, also registered increases of 21 percent and 4 percent, respectively, in their coal purchases.

The company’s power segment sold a total of 455 gigawatt-hours (gWh), of which 79.5 percent was served to transition and bilateral supply contracts, while the rest were sold via the wholesale electricity spot market.

Total volume of energy sold in the first three months was 12 percent lower than the first quarter last year, as the volume of energy generated decreased to a level that was enough to supply the company’s contracts. Rehabilitation work was conducted on the company’s coal power plant in Calaca, Batangas, during the period, Semirara explained.

The newly rehabilitated Unit 2 of the 600-MW Calaca plant underwent several post-rehabilitation shutdowns to undergo further refinement. While the unit’s registered capacity stood at 300 MW, it was not operating on a continuous basis, according to Semirara. Unit 1 registered an average capacity of 160 MW and Unit 2, 171 MW during the period.