International Container Terminal Services, Inc. said it is keeping an eye out for possible expansion opportunities in other Asian countries, particularly in Cambodia, and other regions such as America and Africa.
At the recent annual stockholders’ meeting, ICTSI chairman and president Enrique K. Razon Jr said the company is eyeing Cambodia but is awaiting Cambodian government moves to change its rules.
There are no plans to expand into Myanmar, which opened its doors to the world recently. Myanmar has nine ports, according to the Myanma Ports Authority.
Global operations and expansion of its overseas terminal portfolio contributed to ICTSI’s 2012 earnings.
Revenue from port operations reached US$729.3 million last year, 10% higher than in 2011. Net income hit $143.2 million, a 10% improvement over $130.5 million earned in 2011.
“The Group’s market mix – global operations in advanced, developing and mostly emerging market economies – partly accounted for ICTSI’s stability as it weathered in 2012,” Razon said in a report to shareholders.
In 2012, ICTSI and Lekki Port LFTZ Enterprise, a multi-purpose deep-water port in Lagos, Nigeria, entered into a memorandum of understanding to develop and operate the container terminal at Deep Water Port in the Lagos Free Trade Zone, a US$225 million investment.
Its subsidiary, ICTSI Mauritius Ltd., also signed an agreement to buy 35% of the shares of stock in Pakistan International Container Terminal Ltd. Another subsidiary, ICTSI Far East Ltd., acquired Indonesian Stock Exchange-listed PT Karwell Indonesia Tbk, renaming it as PT ICTSI Jasa Prima Tbk.
ICTSI’s subsidiary in Indonesia, PT Makassar Terminal Services, renewed its contract to operate and manage the Makassar Container Terminal for another 10 years.
On another note, ICTSI pulled its operations in Syria by the end of last year, claiming force majeure because of the raging civil war that the company said posed hazard to its operations and personnel in that Middle Eastern country.
Kattapuli International Container Terminal, a partnership venture of its subsidiary, International Container Terminal Services (India) Pte. Ltd. with L&T Shipbuilding Ltd., opened for commercial operations in January this year. ICTSI was also awarded the 30-year contract for the design, financing, construction, maintenance, operation and exploitation of the specialized container and general cargo terminal of Puerto Cortes in Honduras.
With its improving global container volume, ICTSI’s consolidated volume grew 8% from 5.23 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2011 to 5.63 million TEUs in 2012. The company attributed this to growth in its international and domestic trades, the full-year contribution from new ports in the United States and Croatia and consolidation of volume generated from new terminal operations in Indonesia and Pakistan.
Volume from its six key terminal operations – which account for 73% of the total volume – in Manila, Brazil, Poland, Ecuador, Madagascar and China increased by 6% from 3.87 million TEUs to 4.11 million TEUs.
Its Asia operations increased in volume by 9% to 3.23 million TEUs last year, from 2.96 million TEUs in 2011.
ICTSI announced a cash dividend of P0.70 per share to stockholders on record as of May 6, 2013, with the payout date on May 21.
Photo from www.ictsi.com
