NICKEL Asia Corp. on Friday said its attributable net income grew more than fourfold to P8.55 billion last year from P2.05 billion the previous year as a result of higher ore prices and record shipments of ore.
The company said in a statement that its revenues reached P24.7 billion, more than double compared with P11.1 billion in 2013. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization increased to P15.84 billion compared to P4.99 billion in the prior year. Nickel Asia said its earnings included some P324- million profits of Taganito HPAL Nickel Corp., where it has a 22.5-percent equity stake.
The company also recognized earnings of P198 million representing its share in the profits of Coral Bay Nickel Corp. for the last three quarters of 2014.
The company obtained a direct 10-percent ownership in Coral Bay in the first quarter of 2014 through a property dividend declared by its 60 percent-owned subsidiary, Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corp.
Shipment volumes last year increased by 28 percent to 17.9 million wet metric tons (WMT) from 14 million WMT in 2013.
Sales of limonite ore amounted to 12.1 million WMT compared to 10.4 million WMT in 2013, while sales of saprolite ore was 5.8 million WMT as against 3.6 million WMT in the prior year.
The increase was mainly the result of much-higher ore deliveries to Taganito HPAL, which was on its first full year of commercial operations in 2014, it said.
“The much-improved market conditions and higher ore production and sales resulted in record-breaking earnings last year,” said Gerard Brimo, the company’s president and CEO.
“We are also delighted at the results of the first full year of operations of the new Taganito HPAL plant, which has met all expectations,” he said.
Meanwhile, shipments of low-grade limonite ore to the plant from its 65 percent-owned subsidiary, Taganito Mining Corp., increased from 0.87 million WMT in 2013 to 4 million WMT.
Shipments of the same type of ore material from Rio Tuba operation to Coral Bay of 3.4 million WMT remain unchanged.
Exports of ore to China, however, decreased from 8.7 million WMT in 2013 to 8.5 million WMT, while shipments to Japan increased from 1.1 million WMT to 1.8 million WMT. About 158,000 WMT was also exported to Australia in 2014.
“With respect to prices of the company’s various ore products, the effect of the Indonesian ore ban in January 2014 led to a surge in prices, particularly in the second and third quarters of the year,” the company said.
On a US dollar per WMT basis, the average realized price for ore exports amounted to $45.10 compared to $21.28 per WMT the previous year.
VG Cabuag