DMCI’s net profit rises 28% to P6.6b

Manila Standard Today
By Jenniffer B. Austria | Aug. 18, 2015 at 11:20pm

DMCI Holdings Inc. said Tuesday first-half consolidated net income climbed 28 percent to P6.6 billion from P5.1 billion year-on-year on higher profit contribution from coal mining, power and real estate businesses.

DMCI’s coal mining and power unit Semirara Mining and Power Corp. accounted for P2.67 billion of DMCI’s total net income, up 78 percent from P1.5 billion recorded in the same period a year ago.

DMCI Homes, the conglomerate’s real estate unit, contributed P1.7 billion to the total profit, up 4 percent, while water subsidiary Maynilad Water Services Inc. accounted for P1.14 billion, up 22 percent from last year’s level.

DMCI Mining also delivered P454 million in net income, up 24 percent from a year ago level, while DMCI Power contributed P215 million, up 72 percent.

Meanwhile, net income contribution from the group’s construction arm, DMCI Construction Inc., declined 44 percent in the first half of the year to P333 million from P591 million in 2014 due to the delayed implementation of major public infrastructure projects and lower variation orders booked compared with last year’s.

“We delivered a good first-half performance and remain on track to meet our profit guidance of P12 billion,” DMCI chairman and president Isidro Consunji said.

The Environment and Natural Resources Department last week lifted the cease-and-desist order against the Panian operations of Semirara after several days of suspension due to a landslide on July 17. The accident killed nine miners in Semirara’s East Panian expansion project in Caluya, Antique province.

Semirara said it received on August 10 the order from the DENR lifting the suspension of the ECC “on the basis of its findings that there is no adverse effect or damage to the environment in relation to the landslide... at the northern edge of the Panian Mine...”

Consunji said the mining suspension affected just four days of operations for the month of July and another seven days in August.

he company hopes to accelerate operations in September and October to ramp up production.

Semirara still has 300,000 tons of remaining coal stockpile, down from 500,000 tons when the mining suspension was implemented.

Because of limited supply, Consunji said Semirara stopped exporting coal and selling to local users.

Consunji said Semirara started test commissioning units 3 and 4 of the Calaca power plant with a total output of 300 megawatts.

Consunji expects units 3 and 4 to boost Semirara’s net income by P2 billion and revenues by P7.5 billion starting next year. source