CREIT net income surges in 9 months

MANILA, Philippines — Citicore Energy REIT Corp. (CREIT), the country’s first renewable energy REIT, saw its net income surged to almost eight times in the nine months ending September to P906.5 million.

With the shift in revenue source from electricity sales to the more stable and resilient land lease, CREIT said its revenues likewise soared during the period to almost five-fold to P996.8 million.

CREIT president and CEO Oliver Tan said the REIT business model of leasing assets has proven to be very efficient, with operating and net income margins higher year-on-year at 92 percent and 91 percent, respectively, as of September.

“This enables us also to generate higher income and share a bigger portion of our distributable income with our shareholders, compared with other investment alternatives,” Tan said.

As a result of its strong performance, CREIT declared cash dividends of P0.044 per share on Nov. 9, representing income from the third quarter of the year and payable on Jan. 5, 2023.

Since the start of the year, CREIT said it has consistently paid out 107 percent of its distributable income, which is more than the mandatory 90 percent requirement.

The company intends to sustain the momentum on a quarterly basis in line with its REIT plan and dividend policy.

“The guaranteed and recurring revenues from CREIT’s 100 percent occupancy and long-term lease contracts with cycle-resilient solar plant operators protect us even during adverse market conditions, and allow us to reward our shareholders with a steady dividend stream despite market uncertainties,” Tan said.

Tan said the company’s current goal is to accelerate growth trajectory and expand its green asset portfolio by acquiring real estate properties ideal for utility-scale solar power generation that will be value-accretive to CREIT and its shareholders.

CREIT intends to issue its maiden ASEAN Green Bond offering to fund the acquisition of new real estate properties and further cement its position as the largest renewable energy landlord in the country.

With an existing portfolio of almost 200 hectares fully leased out to operating solar plants, proceeds from the P3 billion offering, with an overallotment option of P1.5 billion, is earmarked for up to 500 more hectares of land.

The land will then be leased out to solar power generators and operators.

The proposed CREIT ASEAN Green Bond offering has been rated PRS Aa+, stable outlook by the Philippine Rating Services Corp.

Citicore Renewable Energy Corp., CREIT’s sponsor, is one of the pioneers in solar power generation and looks to expand its renewable energy portfolio through other forms, such as hydro and wind, with a project pipeline of over 3,000 MWdc in the next five years.

CREIT said the assets could be potentially infused into the company to strengthen and diversify its portfolio of renewable energy-based leasing revenues.