Petron Malaysia posts higher pre-tax profit in Q2

KUALA LUMPUR: Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd’s pre-tax profit for the second quarter (Q2) ended June 30, 2017 rose to RM117.57 million compared with RM86.71 million for the same quarter last year.

In a filing to Bursa Malaysia yesterday, it said, revenue jumped to RM2.41 billion compared with RM1.83 billion previously.

It said the sales revenue for the period grew by 32 per cent to RM2.4 billion, largely due to the nine per cent increase in average crude prices and improvement in product cracks.

“Sales volume increased to 8.5 million barrels, a nine per cent improvement from the 7.8 million sold during the previous year,” it said.

It said Dated Brent price, which averaged US$49.80 (US$1=RM4.28) per barrel in the second quarter, dropped from the first quarter average of US$53.80. The negative impact on margins was partly cushioned by the favourable price difference between finished products and crude, it said.

The company also realised gains on service station divestments as a result of compulsory acquisition by the government.

Meanwhile, total revenue for the first half of 2017 reached RM4.9 billion, representing a 43 per cent growth from last year’s RM3.48 billion, while pre-tax profit rose to RM266.04 million compared with RM109.44 million previously.

On outlook, the company said, it continued to pursue initiatives to counter any possible adverse impact of market uncertainties.

“The company is pursuing various projects to further improve operational efficiencies, especially in the areas of supply, logistics and facilities to support anticipated growth,” it said.