Energy Development Corp., the country’s largest geothermal and wind energy company led by the Lopez Group, said Wednesday net income climbed 23.7 percent in 2016 to P9.72 billon from P7.86 billion in 2015.
EDC’s core net income also rose 4 percent to P9.16 billion from P8.8 billion, on improved performance and lower operating expenses of the Negros Island and First Gen Hydro business units.
Revenues, however, declined slightly to P34.2 billion, on lower electricity prices last year.
“The Bacman and Nasulo geothermal plants were amongst the most exposed to last year’s record-low electricity spot market prices. A reported 25-percent average drop in prices for these plants resulted in a revenue loss of over P1.4 billion full-year,” EDC chief financial officer Nestor Vasay said in a statement.
Vasay said EDC had “moved quickly to address and manage the downside from potentially low spot market prices.”
EDC lined up contracts that would cover 100 percent of Bacman’s capacity and almost 80 percent of Nasulo’s as of end-December 2016.
The company’s 150-megawatt Burgos wind farm, the largest in the country, continued to build on its 2015 performance. Revenues from the Burgos wind project in Ilocos Norte increased by almost P400 million as annual wind energy generation increased by 60 gigawatt-hours to 320 gWh from 260 gWh in 2015.
EDC’s hydro unit also posted a 21-percent increase in annual revenues, primarily driven by higher sales volume. The Mindanao and Palinpinon geothermal power plants also recorded revenue increases from a combination of higher sales volume and average contract price.
“For this year, EDC will continue with its asset reliability program as it targets to finish the retrofit of the Tongonan power plant and the refurbishment of other generating units in Leyte,” Vasay said.
“As we had been telling our investors, our focus for the past years has been embarking on initiatives to deliver ‘financial predictability’ — some benefits of which we expect to see starting this year,” the EDC official said.
The company’s financial position remained strong with cash balance of P10.6 billion.
EDC, an affiliate of First Gen Corp. is part of the Lopez Group of Companies. It is the largest producer of geothermal energy and one of the leading renewable energy companies in the country.