Petron nets P4.99 B in 9 months
Petron nets P4.99-B in 9 months
Myrna M. Velasco
Leading oil firm Petron Corporation reported a net income of P4.99 billion in nine months this year, reversing a P12.6 billion in net loss in the same period last year.
In a statement, the firm noted it continues “to show recovery amid the pandemic as its volume and revenues remained on the uptrend in the second and third quarters of the year despite the re-imposition of mobility restrictions.”
On the back of surging oil prices in the world market that topped $75 per barrel in this year’s third quarter, Petron reported that its combined revenues from Philippine and Malaysian operations had climbed 35-percent to P291.57 billion from a leaner P216.43 billion last year.
President and CEO Ramon S. Ang said “we continue to prioritize volume recovery through programs that will not only help us generate more volumes but also reward loyal customers.”
Particularly for the the State-underpinned Covid-19 vaccination program, the company chief executive narrated that the oil firm had just “recently concluded the third wave of Panalo Bakunado promo where we gave discounts in the form of loyalty points to vaccinated motorists aside from our already existing programs like the Super Driver Card which provides direct benefits to public transport drivers.”
Adding to the firm’s financial recovery strategy is reinforcing its efforts on reducing costs -- that in turn yielded more savings and helped propped Petron’s top and bottom lines.
Still, the company emphasized that its sales volume within January to September stretch had been relatively flat at 59.2 million barrels from year ago’s almost parallel level of 59.5 million barrels, and that was attributed by the oil firm to “sustained quarantine lockdowns of 2021.”
Ang stressed “despite external challenges, sustaining the financial resilience of the company has helped ensure that we have the means and the capacity to continue growing the business while providing our investors with the best returns.”
He added that with programmed strategic investments on service station expansion, refinery enhancements and supply chain management, “we are looking forward to ending 2021 in a much stronger and stable position than last year.”
According to the oil company, key trade segments registered improved performance – primarily in the domestic sales of lubricants which had expanded by 28-percent.
On the sphere of retail volume sales, Petron specified that this still escalated by 9.0-percent “even as the government re-imposed stricter quarantine protocols to contain another surge in Covid-19 infections.”
Notably, the most stringent lockdowns enforced in the country this year because of the niggling health crisis had been the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and modified ECQ restrictions in April-May; and that recurred in August-September because of rising cases instigated by Covid’s Delta variant.
On the oil firm’s petrochemical exports, this posted meaningful growth of 68-percent within the nine-month span if compared to 2020 volume.