Steady expansion abroad helped ICTSI achieve record H1 income

Higher revenues from its port operations propelled the first semester earnings of International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) to a new record of $420.55 million.

In a stock exchange filing on Monday, ICTSI said this was a 34-percent surge from the previous year.

Excluding a one-time gain from its settlement of legal claims at ICTSI Oregon and the deconsolidation of PT PBM Olah Jasa Andal, its business unit in Indonesia, the Enrique Razon Jr.-led firm’s net income would have still grown 24 percent to $401.69 million.

READ: Global expansion lifts ICTSI income by 36%

“We’ve delivered a strong first half performance, yet again demonstrating the strength of ICTSI’s diversified international portfolio and continued delivery of our strategic initiatives,” said ICTSI chair and president Razon, who was recently declared the country’s richest individual by Forbes Magazine.

Revenues from port operations grew by 13 percent to $1.32 billion on the back of ancillary services, tariff adjustments, volume growth and foreign exchange gains.

ICTSI handled a consolidated volume of 6.31 million twenty-foot equivalent units in the January to June period, representing only a slight 0.48-percent increase.

This was due to less volume at some of its terminals and discontinued operations in Pakistan.

Excluding these factors, ICTSI’s consolidated volume would have inched up by 6 percent.

Capital expenditure in the first six months reached $185.72 million, which was spent mostly on domestic and international expansion, particularly in Mexico, Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Indonesia.

ICTSI expects to spend a total of $450 million this year for the development of various projects, including the East Java Multipurpose Terminal in Indonesia and the Visayas Container Terminal (VCT) in Iloilo City.

ICTSI assumed control of VCT in April via a P10.53-billion deal to rehabilitate the facility and bring in cargo-handling equipment to improve operations.

At the same time, the company is expected to start building by next year an $800-million seaport in Bauan, Batangas to boost shipping capacity in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) and synergize with the Manila International Container Terminal. —Meg J. Adonis INQ