NPC remits P2.6-billion dividends to nat’l government
Thursday, January 18, 2007
By MYRNA M. VELASCO
After posting income of P85.99 billion in 2005 primarily due to foreign exchange gains, state-run National Power Corporation (NPC) managed to remit P2.6-billion worth of dividends to the national government.
The power utility which teetered on bankruptcy in 2003 and 2004 was able to achieve turnaround after the national government assumed P200-billion worth of its outstanding loan obligations in 2004.
By stroke of luck, the peso-dollar exchange rate also improved immensely in 2005, thus, resulting in positive bottomline for the perennially losing state-run company.
The profitability of the power firm was likewise shored up mainly because of the series of rate adjustments approved for its generation charges by the Energy Regulatory Commission in 2004 and 2005.
NPC president Cyril C. del Callar is hopeful that 2006 will also turn out a good year for the power firm, given the further forex improvement stimulated by heavy inflow of dollars from overseas Filipino workers.
Due to higher peso-dollar exchange rate in the first half, official documents earlier showed that NPC suffered a net loss of P8.3 billion during the period; but del Callar is optimistic that this will be reversed at the end of the year .
posted by philpower @ 7:27 AM,
