Nenaco eyes strategic investor to shore up capital

Negros Navigation Co. (Nenaco), the shipping subsidiary of Metro Pacific Corp., is considering taking in a strategic investor to shore up its capital and further enhance its operations.

MPC chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said: "We have no immediate plans but we do know that we need to raise money for Nenaco. We would like to bring in more shareholders into the company. We own majority of the company (referring to Nenaco) and that means very little movement of share price."

Nenaco officials earlier said the company was holding talks with interested parties, both local and international, for raising funds through partnerships.

MPC however, will remain to be the majority owner of Nenaco even after the planned sale but the company is still seeking other alternatives to raise the needed cash, officials said.

MPC owns 98 percent of Nenaco, the country’s second largest domestic passenger and cargo shipping company next to WG&A which will soon be renamed Aboitiz Transport Group.

Nenaco plans to buy new cargo ships following strong revenues from cargo shipments last year. The company serves 15 routes throughout the country. It plans to expand this year particularly in Visayas and Mindanao.

Nenaco reported a 118.75 percent jump in consolidated profit in the first quarter this year to P10.5 million from P4.8 million in the same period last year.

Officials are confident Nenaco will be able to sustain the turnaround it made in 2002 when it posted a P102.701-million net income after two consecutive years of losses. Nenaco incurred a P1.8-billion loss in 2001, and another P814.7-million loss in 2000.

Consolidated revenues for the first three months nudged up 1.5 percent to P605.5 million year on year. Revenues from the passenger business grew 4.8 percent to P352.4 million, while income from freight services was flat at P242.1 million. Last year, Nenaco’s revenue was at P2.355 billion. – Zinnia de la Peña