PTT's Fourth-Quarter Profit Rise Fueled by Commodity Prices — Commodity Comment
By Yongchang Chin
PTT PCL's fourth-quarter net profit more than doubled from a year earlier partly due to higher commodity prices. Here are some remarks from the company's earnings report.
On gas:
The Thailand-listed company's gas revenue rose 45% in the quarter on the back of "higher average selling prices of all products in accordance with the higher petrochemical referenced prices." That helped offset a 2.3% decline in average sales volume that was "mainly from a shortfall of gas delivery...together with the lower sales volume to power plant customers" amid lower household demand and seasonality factors. PTT noted that some power plants in Thailand substituted natural gas with fuel oil and diesel "to minimize the impact from the rising in global gas prices."
On coal:
Coal sales revenue more than doubled to THB5.77 billion mainly due to the increase in average selling prices in line with the Newcastle coal benchmark price, PTT said. "In addition, sales volume increased...from 1.7 million tons in 4Q 2020 to 1.8 million tons in 4Q 2021, primarily from higher demand in China."
On oil products:
Oil business revenue rose 44% to THB158.27 billion on higher average selling prices and increased sales volumes, which rose to 442,757 barrels a day from 429,494 barrels a day a year ago. Diesel and fuel-oil sales were bright spots, "as the energy shortage has increased the demand from power plants," PTT said, referring to the global shortage of energy commodities in late 2021.
Write to Yongchang Chin at yongchang.chin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 17, 2022 23:42 ET (04:42 GMT)
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