MANILA, Philippines — Strong operations from its ports here and abroad lifted International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI)’s earnings to $184.9 million in the nine months ending September, 29 percent higher compared to $142.9 million recorded in the same period last year.
ICTSI attributed the higher earnings to strong operating income contribution from the terminals in Congo, Iraq, Mexico, and Manila and Subic in the Philippines, as well as new contracts with shipping lines and services in Melbourne, Australia and continuing ramp-up at the new terminals in Papua New Guinea.
The listed ports operator giant said consolidated net income attributable to equity holders for the three quarters would have increased by 34 percent if not for non-recurring items, which included the acceleration of debt issue costs associated with the partial prepayment of Euro-denominated term loan last July.
Revenue from port operations stood at $1.1 billion, up 10 percent from $1 billion reported for the same nine-month period last year.
ICTSI said the increase in revenues was mainly due to volume growth, tariff adjustments at certain terminals, new contracts with shipping lines and services, and new terminals in Lae and Motukea in Papua New Guinea.
“ICTSI has continued to deliver strong financial performance driven by organic volume growth, diligent cost management, and the continued ramp up of newer terminals. Positive progress has been made across the business which in part has been enabled by the prudent investments we make in our brownfield terminals,” ICTSI chairman and president Enrique Razon said.
“While we remain conscious of the current geopolitical trade tensions, we are well-positioned to deliver value for all our stakeholders,” Razon said.
ICTSI handled consolidated volume of 7.59 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) from January to September, six percent more than the 7.15 million TEUs in the same period in 2018.
The increase in volume was attributed to continuing ramp-up at ICTSI’s new terminals in Papua New Guinea, improvement in trade activities in Subic, Matadi, Congo and Basra, Iraq, as well as new contracts with shipping lines and services in Melbourne, Poland, Croatia and Mexico.
ICTSI has allocated $380 million for capital expenditures this year to be used for the ongoing expansion projects in Manila, Mexico and Iraq, equipment acquisitions and upgrades, and for maintenance requirements.
As a leading global developer, manager and operator of container terminals, ICTSI is present in six continents and continues to pursue container terminal opportunities around the world.