The Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS) reported a nearly 30% increase in operating profit for the first half of the year, driven by a decline in liquefied natural gas (LNG) import prices and improved performance in overseas operations. The company's net profit doubled compared to the same period last year, bolstered by increased investment income from related enterprises.
On August 7, KOGAS announced its preliminary consolidated results for the second quarter, revealing an operating profit of 675.3 billion won, a 66.9% increase, while revenue decreased by 1.6% to 7.508 trillion won. For the first half of the year, operating profit reached 1.5853 trillion won, up 28.0%, with total revenue at 19.3102 trillion won, down 5.2%.
The revenue decline was largely attributed to lower sales prices resulting from falling international oil prices. Although the total natural gas sales volume for the first half was 19.458 million tons, a 3.0% increase from the previous year, the decrease in sales prices led to a revenue drop of 1.0526 trillion won.
Despite the revenue decline, profitability improved. The lower LNG import prices reduced the cost of sales by 1.4148 trillion won compared to the same period last year, and profits from subsidiaries, including those in Mozambique, contributed an additional 346.7 billion won to operating profit.
Strong performance in overseas operations also supported the overall results. The operating profit from six major overseas projects totaled 330.9 billion won, significantly up from 192.0 billion won during the same period last year. Notably, the Canadian LNG project, which recorded an operating loss of 3.3 billion won in the first half of last year, achieved an operating profit of 143.0 billion won this year.
Financial stability showed some improvement as well. As of the end of June, consolidated liabilities stood at 40.5898 trillion won, a decrease of 2.2391 trillion won from the end of last year, while equity increased by 957.3 billion won to 11.7562 trillion won. Consequently, the debt-to-equity ratio fell from 397% to 345%, a reduction of 52 percentage points. However, accounts receivable for raw material costs rose from 13.716 trillion won in the first quarter to 14.1782 trillion won in the second quarter, surpassing the 14 trillion won mark again.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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