21 MAY 2018, MANILA—The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) is accelerating its port infrastructure projects after port revenues posted strong figures in the first three months of the year.
PPA continues to post favorable performance after posting a banner year in 2017 in terms of revenues and dividend remitted to the national coffers.
PPA General Manager Jay Daniel R. Santiago said the positive deviation provides the agency bigger elbow room to further improve the ports with high concentration of cargoes and passengers.
“We have been injecting so much investment in our ports in support of the Build-Build-Build program of the Duterte Administration,” Santiago explained.
“Dredging as well as repair and maintenance costs comprise almost entirely our Expenses for the period, all aimed at making our ports efficient and more responsive to the demands of times,” Santiago said.
“Once completed, these projects will definitely boost our revenues and eventually our income all anchored on faster turnaround of vessels and cargoes in our ports,” Santiago added.
Santiago added that as a sign of good tidings, the PPA also eclipsed its first quarter target by at least 60%.
Total revenues registered a positive deviation with a 9% hike from P3.476 billion in 2017 to P3.783 billion raked in for the period in review, anchored on the strong performance of the Government share from Storage Fees that went up 50%; Layup Fees by 183%, among others.
Fund Management Income, on the other hand, booked a 26.6% hike for the period in review from P24.02 million last year to P30.41 million this year.
Net income, however, declined by some 4% to P2.259 billion from P2.364 billion last year owing to the agency’s high expenses for the period particularly on repair and maintenance and dredging.
Total Expenses for the period, meanwhile, soared by 37.03% from P1.112 billion last year to P1.523 billion this year. Cash and Non-cash Expenses are higher by 46.56% (P740.61 million) and 29.10% (P783.35 million), respectively. Dredging expenses, in particular went up by 644% while repair and maintenance recorded an increase of 117%.
Among the areas where ports are being improved include Puerto Princesa, Eastern Leyte, Ilocos Norte, Occidental Mindoro, Batangas, Ozamiz.
Locally-funded port development projects being carried out include 45 projects in Luzon wherein 7 have already been completed, 19 are ongoing and another 19 projects are for procurement; 19 for Visayas where 3 have already been finished, 8 projects are ongoing and 8 are for procurement; and 40 for Mindanao where 5 have been delivered, 21 ongoing and 14 under procurement.
This year, the PPA is optimistic that it can hit its target gross income of P16.18 billion as some of the port development projects start to go online this year to accommodate the demand of the increasing economic activity this 2018.