Manila Water Company Inc. said Thursday it posted P20.5 billion in operating earnings in 2023, driven by the continued recovery of customer demand with the resumption of economic activities and the implementation of tariff adjustments in the east zone concession and other businesses.
The company said coupled with the implementation of cost management and efficiency initiatives, operating margins improved 11 percentage points to 67 percent.
Consolidated revenues rose 35 percent to nearly P31 billion, supported by the recovery of the east zone’s commercial and industrial accounts and the 20-percent increase in revenues from Manila Water’s non-east zone businesses in the Philippines.
The company said its efforts to streamline costs and realize operating efficiencies contributed to holding costs steady at P10.8 billion.
Manila Water also recognized a one-off provision related to East Water, one of the company’s legacy investments which it acquired in 2018. Manila Water said an impairment provision amounting to P4.1 billion was recognized to reflect current market conditions and outlook.
It said this tapered consolidated net income to P5.6 billion, with net income margin settling at 18 percent.
Taking out non-recurring items, core net income grew 74 percent to P9.6 billion, with core net income margin improving to 31 percent.
“We continue to be encouraged by the recovery of our business and efficiencies from of our cost management initiatives. In our east None business, the implementation of the first set of tariff adjustments has allowed us to continue our projects in compliance with our service obligations. Similarly, we see good results from our non-East Zone subsidiaries such as Boracay, South Luzon, and Calbayog which have posted turnarounds in operations,” Manila Water president and chief executive Jocot de Dios said.
“For our international businesses, the deliberate view we take on our legacy investments is evidence of our disciplined portfolio management. We will further streamline our investments and look for better growth opportunities. We are hopeful that our hard work will continue to yield positive results for the rest of the year,” he said.
Net income in the east zone concession improved by 60 percent to P8.8 billion as higher revenues and effective cost management drove the significant growth in earnings.