CITICORE ENERGY REIT PROFIT SOARS 660% IN 9 MONTHS

Business tycoon Edgar Saavedra’s Citicore Energy REIT Corp. (CREIT) booked a profit surge of over 660 percent in the nine months through September period on strong land lease revenues.

Net income reached P906.5 million from P118.6 million during the same period last year, the company’s financial report showed. Revenues grew almost five times to P997 million.

CREIT earlier shifted its main revenue source from electricity sales to more stable property rentals. The company’s land portfolio spans nearly 200 hectares, which are fully leased to solar power plants.

“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,” company president and CEO Oliver Tan said in a statement.

CREIT declared cash dividends of P0.044 per share last Nov. 9, representing income from the third quarter. The dividends would be paid on Jan. 4 next year to shareholders of record as of Dec. 9 this year.

The company has paid out 107 percent of distributable income to investors since the start of 2022. This was above the mandatory 90-percent required of real estate investment trusts, the statement showed.

“The REIT business model of leasing assets proves to be very efficient, with operating and net income margins higher at 92 percent and 91 percent, respectively, as of September 2022 versus 64 percent and 62 percent in the previous year,” Tan said.