Airport operations drive up Megawide profits
THE operator of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) reported a 26-percent jump in revenues to P1.9 billion in 2016.
In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday, Megawide Construction Corp. said GMR-Megawide Cebu Airport Corp. (GMCAC) contributed 11 percent to the group’s consolidated revenue amounting to P17.7 billion, or 14 percent year-on-year growth.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) in its airport operations was recorded at P1.3 billion, from P971 million in 2015, while net income grew by 80 percent to P903 million in 2016.
“GMCAC, the country’s largest private operator, delivered strong growth in 2016 with substantial contribution to Megawide’s bottom line,” the company said, adding that GMCAC accounted for almost half, or 47 percent of Megawide’s consolidated net income in 2016, or a significant rise from last year’s 34 percent share.
Revenues generated from the airport’s passenger service charge (PSC), which was implemented in June 2015, accounted for 59 percent of total GMCAC revenues.
Meanwhile, commercial revenues from leasing activities covered 28 percent of the earnings, whereas aero-related revenues comprised 13 percent.
As a construction conglomerate, Megawide said it is keen on supporting the Duterte administration’s Build Build Build program by investing in transportation and infrastructure projects.
On the transport sector, the group said it will pursue its unsolicited P209 billion proposal for the 50-year development of MCIA, including plans for a second independent, parallel runway. In addition, it said it is interested to participate in the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the Clark Airport later this year, and the following operations and maintenance (O&M) tender in the first quarter of 2018.
The 20-year-old conglomerate is also keen on investing in its first railway project in Manila. Megawide president and chief operating officer (COO) Edgar Saavedra said Megawide has formulated an unsolicited proposal for the 9.77-kilometer East West Railway Project that will traverse Diliman, Quezon City to España Blvd.
Megawide has also shown impressive performance in the capital markets. Its stock price jumped by 139 percent at the end of 2016 to P14.8, from P6.2 at the end of 2015.
This resulted in the company’s highest market capitalization at P31.7 billion since its initial public offering (IPO) in 2011.