The net income of the country’s largest coal producer declined 8 percent in the third quarter of 2024 to P3.1 billion from P3.4 billion a year ago.
Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC) linked the decline to lower contributions from the coal segment amid stabilizing market prices.
“As anticipated, stabilizing market prices exerted pressure on our margins,” SMPC president and chief operating officer Maria Cristina Gotianun said in a disclosure to the stock exchange Wednesday.
“Our third-quarter results also reflect the seasonal impact of the rainy season on coal shipments and electricity prices, both of which we were able to partially offset through focused cost management and operational efficiency initiatives,” she said.
The Newcastle Index fell 5 percent from July to September to $140.3 from $147.8 a year ago, while the Indonesian Coal Index 4 dipped by 1 percent to $51.7 from $52.
Average selling price of electricity remained steady at P4.80 per kilowatt-hour.
Semirara’s net income also fell 31 percent in the first nine months from P22.62 billion in 2023 to P15.71 billion in 2024.
“For the remainder of the year, we expect coal and electricity prices to remain stable,” Gotianun said.
“Our focus is on meeting our coal production target of 16 million metric tons and achieving a balance in our contracted generation capacity mix,” she said.
Total coal shipments climbed 16 percent to 2.9 million metric tons, driven by stronger export demand, particularly to China.
The average selling price of Semirara coal dropped 15 percent to P2,811 per metric ton from P3,315 per MT.
Total coal production rose 7 percent from 2.8 million MT to 3 million MT due to previous low production levels.
Meanwhile, total gross power generation increased 12 percent from 1,167 gigawatt-hours to 1,308 GWh on improved output from both the SEM-Calaca Power Corp. and Southwest Luzon Power Generation Corp.
Total power sales went up by 10 percent to 1,213 GWh, with 54 percent of the generated electricity sold to the spot market.
