“This has been a more difficult year operationally, but we continue to adapt,” said SMPC president, chief operating officer and chief sustainability officer Maria Cristina C. Gotianun. “Our priority is to strengthen reliability, manage costs, and preserve our financial flexibility to navigate changing market and operating conditions.”
Key details
• Global coal benchmarks weakened, with the Newcastle Index down 22 percent to US$104.5 and ICI4 down 16 percent to US$45.9.
• Spot electricity prices in the Luzon-Visayas grid dropped 33 percent to P3.73 per kilowatt-hour.
• SMPC’s third-quarter net income plunged 53 percent to P1.5 billion from P3.1 billion a year ago.
• Lower energy prices and rising production costs continued to weigh heavily on profitability.
Volume increase
Still, SMPC recorded higher volumes, with coal shipments up 5 percent to 12.9 million metric tons and power sales rising 12 percent to 4,186 gigawatt-hours on stronger exports and improved plant performance.
Coal production also climbed 15 percent to 15.1 million metric tons, marking a record output that helped offset some of the price-driven revenue declines.
—Edited by Miguel R. Camus
