Stronger sales drive up Petron’s Jan-Sept net income

Higher sales from local and international operations continued to fuel the earnings of Petron Corp., the country’s sole crude oil refiner, in the first three quarters of the year.

Petron reported its consolidated nine-month net income at the end of September grew by 64 percent to P8.2 billion from P4.99 billion the year prior.

Consolidated revenues for the period more than doubled to P631.1 billion from P291.6 billion.

“Despite uncertainties from geopolitical conflicts affecting the industry, we are pleased to note that our recovery is still on track,” said Petron president and CEO Ramon Ang.

The Philippine and Malaysian operations of Petron, including its trading subsidiary in Singapore, saw its combined sales volume expand by 37 percent to 80.4 million barrels from 58.8 million barrels.

This reflected higher fuel demand, according to Petron, adding sales volume in the Philippines alone jumped by nearly 30 percent.

According to Petron, the demand recovery in most economies supported the continued strength of regional refining cracks resulting in the overall improvement in margins.

The price of Dubai crude, the Asian bellwether, averaged $96.88 per barrel, down by $11 per barrel in the third quarter due to recession fears.

“Despite the correction in the third quarter, prices of finished fuel products remained elevated compared to last year,” said the company.

Operating income, meanwhile, surged by 23 percent to P16.5 billion but was tempered by the increase in financing cost due to the unprecedented strengthening of US dollars against the peso and the successive hikes in interest rates.

“We are working hard so we can end the year strong and remain committed to providing consumers and industries quality fuel products they need,” added Ang.

Petron, which operates a 180,000 barrel-per-day refinery in Bataan, 30 terminals and over 2,000 service stations nationwide, recently obtained its shareholders’ green light to construct a coco-methyl ester plant and secure the relevant permits.

It also acquired a palm methyl ester plant in Malaysia to serve as an internal source for its biodiesel products.

Earlier this year, the facility underwent capacity expansion to support higher demand for biodiesel in the country. INQ