Global Ferronickel earnings down 16% on lower shipments
GLOBAL Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. reported that its second-quarter net income declined by 16.2% to P615.58 million from P734.56 million in the previous year.
“The group encountered more rainy days this period totaling 128 rainy days compared to 105 rainy days during the same period in 2021. The group only managed to complete 19 shipments of nickel ore totaling 1.035 million wet metric tons (WMT) during the first half of the year, compared to 32 shipments totaling 1.740 WMT during the same period last year,” the firm said in a disclosure on Tuesday.
Revenues from contracts with customers likewise slipped by 12.5% to P2.17 billion from P2.48 billion in 2021.
“The results are driven by the April to June mining operations of Platinum Group Metals Corp. (PGMC) in Surigao del Norte, with incremental contributions from PGMC International Limited (PIL), a wholly-owned subsidiary es-tablished to facilitate relations with Chinese customers for the trading of mineral products,” it added.
Global Ferronickel President Dante R. Bravo said that the company is looking forward to better weather in the third quarter, which is typically the peak of PGMC’s mining season. It is expected to bring in more than 60% of the firm’s total revenues for the year.
“Despite the fewer volume sold for the period ended on June, the group benefited from the higher average realized foreign exchange rate this year at P52.60 compared to the prior period’s P48.24,” he added.
The firm also noted that nickel ore prices were also higher this year with an overall average realized nickel ore price at $39.21 per WMT, compared to last year’s period at $31.10 per WMT.
“The resulting sales mix was 79% low-grade ore and 21% medium-grade ore in 2022 in contrast to the previous period’s mix of 84% low-grade ore and 16% medium-grade ore,” it added.
“We have adjusted our 2022 shipment target to 4.0 million WMT but we still look forward to a productive and remarkable season due to the strong demand from China and favorable market conditions,” Mr. Bravo said.
Global Ferronickel is a holding company with principal business interests in mineral resource exploration, mining, and exporting of nickel ore.
Its mineral property comprises 4,376 hectares in Brgy. Cagdianao Claver, Surigao del Norte.
The firm’s subsidiaries are PGMC, FNI Steel Corp., and FNI Steel Landholdings Corp.
On Tuesday, Global Ferronickel shares ended lower by 4.98% or 12 centavos to close at P2.29 apiece. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson
