Lower coal prices cut Semirara profit

MANILA, Philippines — Consunji-led Semirara Mining and Power Corp. (SMPC) registered lower earnings from January to March, mainly due to weaker coal selling prices.

The country’s largest coal producer saw its net income plunge by 33 percent to P4.35 billion in the first quarter from P6.54 billion in the same period last year.

Revenues also contracted, declining by 10 percent to P16.51 billion from P18.43 billion as global coal prices corrected during the period.

While coal production improved by 16 percent to 5.7 million metric tons from 4.9 million MT, SMPC’s shipments dipped by two percent to 4.7 million MT from 4.8 million MT amid lower domestic sales and steady foreign shipments.

The power segment, however, was a bright spot for SMPC.

Total gross generation was higher by nine percent to 1,535 gigawatt-hours from 1,408 GWh on the back of expanded average capacity of unit SEM-Calaca Power Corp. (SCPC).

Power sales sizzled by 11 percent to 1,427 GWh from 1,281 GWh, with the bulk of generated capacity sold to the spot market.

About 40 percent of the power segment’s 840-megawatt dependable capacity was already contracted as of the end of the first quarter, SMPC said.

“We navigated the softer energy market through improved power generation and coal production, strengthened contracting strategies and disciplined cost management,” SMPC president and COO Maria Cristina Gotianun said.

These factors, she added, would continue to anchor the company’s growth prospects amid an evolving energy landscape.

As the leading domestic coal producer, SMPC supplies fuel to power plants, cement factories and other industrial facilities across the country. It also exports coal to China, South Korea, Brunei and other nearby markets.

The listed firm, through operating subsidiaries SCPC and Southwest Luzon Power Generation Corp., produces baseload power for the national grid.

Both facilities also supply electricity through bilateral contracts and the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market, the centralized venue for power trading.