After string of losses in recent years, Pangilinan-led PXP Energy Corporation is finally showing green shoots of recovery to profitability, with a consolidated net income of P14 million in the first half of this year, a reversal of the P56.3 million losses posted in the same period last year.
On a core basis, however, it was still a net loss of P22.2 million, although that was already trimmed from a heftier P26.9 million in a parallel six-month period last year.
The company noted its consolidated petroleum revenues had been 220.3-percent higher, inching up to P19.6 million within January-June this year from a relatively marginal P6.1 million a year ago.
It emphasized the 250-percent surge in crude sale prices for its lifting from the Galoc field – which had been traded at average US$63.48 per barrel this 2021 from last year’s US$18.13 per barrel average.
Nevertheless, the company specified that the soaring oil prices had been offset by “slightly lower output following normal decline in field production rate” at its Service Contract 14C-1 at the Galoc field.
Additionally, the company indicated that its consolidated costs and expenses had jumped 37.8-pecent to P54.4 million from the previous year’s P39.5 million, qualifying that such was “brought about by lower petroleum production costs in SC 14C-1.”
The company similarly reported that it incurred an increase in its general and administrative expenses, which reached P40.5 million this year versus P23.5 million in the same period in 2020.
PXP Energy had further allocated for its decommissioning costs amounting to P121.8 million – and there was no similar cost item booked for such in the same financial review period last year.
It added that on its income tax, there had been P168.1 million net effect of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act (CREATE Act) that relates to PXP Energy’s deferred tax assets and liabilities.
PXP Energy has been pursuing oil and gas exploration ventures in the Philippines; and also in offshore markets, including a concession in Peru which it has been undertaking with an Australian partner. But that Peru venture recently hit a snag because of its partner’s reluctance to enter into the fourth period of their exploration phase.
In the Philippine upstream oil sector, PXP Energy is still tugging its way also into possibly resuming seismic survey activities as well as targeted drillings at its petroleum blocks in Northwest Palawan basin, including prospect at the Recto Bank.