Megawide banks on revenge travel to hasten comeback

Megawide Construction Corp. sees a turnaround this 2022 after two years of being in the red as demand for travel returns.

The operator of Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) said in a regulatory filing on Friday that airport revenues declined by 48 percent to P576.04 million last year from P1.11 billion in 2020. MCIA is currently operating at just 20 percent to 30 percent of its prepandemic level.

But Megawide chair and CEO Edgar Saavedra is optimistic that the remainder of the summer season and the upcoming national elections—against a backdrop of lower COVID-19 infections—will drive people to travel again.

“Hopefully, with a higher vaccination rate nationwide and managed infections this year, travel will be restored and [the] return to prepandemic activities will be accelerated,” he added.

Citing International Air Transport Association data, Megawide executive director for infrastructure development Louie Ferrer said MCIA would also benefit from the anticipated revenge spending as global air travel was seen to reach 80 percent to 90 percent of prepandemic levels until next year.

MCIA, in preparation for the return of tourism, has teamed up with Emirates and Turkish Airlines to access European and Middle East markets.

Overall, Megawide saw its consolidated revenues grow by 21 percent to P15.4 billion last year. The construction segment alone improved revenues by 32 percent to P14.3 billion.

Net loss

Like its airport segment, its landport business was also affected by the lockdowns. Revenues declined by 21 percent to P715.04 million.

Direct operation costs, which were mostly for the construction business, meanwhile rose by 24 percent to P12.90 billion from P10.41 billion year-on-year. Other operating expenses were also up by 16 percent to P1.78 billion.

Net loss thus widened to P893.15 million in 2021 from P874.60 million the previous year.

Total assets and liabilities stood at P85.03 billion and P65.83 billion, respectively, as of end-December 2021.

In another development, Megawide said the interim market in its Carbon Market redevelopment project in Cebu has been completed and could now be used by vendors.

The firm’s subsidiary, Cebu2World Development Inc., was awarded in 2020 a P5.5-billion project to redevelop Cebu City’s oldest and largest farmer’s market.