Reported net income up 25%
MANILA, Philippines – Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) reported a 25 percent jump in its net income in the first half to nearly P7 billion, driven by the strong performance of its tollroad and hospital businesses.
Core net income went up 13 percent to P6.6 billion largely due to robust traffic growth in the group’s tollroads here and in Vietnam.
Given increased contributions from its tollroad business, the group plans to further beef up its portfolio of road projects in the ASEAN region.
In a briefing yesterday, MPIC president and CEO Jose Ma. Lim said the company is eyeing several toll road projects in Malaysia and Indonesia through joint venture arrangements with local partners.
“The one in Indonesia is being discussed…That’s a road project that is part of the Trans Java tollways,” Lim said.
MPIC is engaged in the toll road sector in Thailand through its 29.45 percent stake in toll road operator Don Muang Tollway Public Co. Ltd. In Vietnam, MPIC holds a 45 percent interest in CII Bridges and Roads Investment Joint Stock Co. which has various road and bridge projects in and around Ho Chi Minh City.
The company is currently the largest toll road operator in the Philippines, accounting for 60 percent of the total 320 kilometers of toll roads. Subsidiary Manila North Tollways Corp. operates the North Luzon Expressway and Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway.
Among the different segments, power (distribution and generation) accounted for P4.2 billion or 52 percent of the aggregate contribution to the company’s net operating income while Maynilad and the toll roads each contributed P1.8 billion or 22 percent of total.
The Hospital Group contributed P249 million or three percent of the total while rail and systems pumped in P116 million or one percent of total.
“Our strong earnings growth reflects significant volume increases for all our businesses together with our intense focus on operational efficiencies which have been achieved at the cost of years of elevated capital expenditures,” Lim said.
Lim said earnings would have been much stronger were it not for the ongoing delay in tariff increases for our water and toll roads businesses.
“We are greatly encouraged by initial indications from the new administration that we will be able to move to a swift resolution of these key pending matters,” Lim said.
““I expect continued strong volume growth for the rest of the year from all our businesses,” he added.
MPIC has earmarked P58 billion in capital expenditures this year, of which P25 billion will go to Meralco, P13.8 billion for Maynilad and P7 billion for the toll roads.