KUALA LUMPUR: Amid a slump in the price of oil, Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd has recorded a surge in profit that will get even better as the company initiates expansion plans, according to Chairman Ramon Ang. Ang, 63, who is also the president of Petron Corp, the Philippines’ largest oil company, said the profit trend at its Malaysian unit will continue after it completed plant repairs and rebranding of its gas stations last year. In May, Petron Malaysia reported first-quarter profit jumped to 108.5 million ringgit (US$25.3 million), from 16.6 million ringgit a year earlier. Shares of the company gained as much as 2.3% in Kuala Lumpur, after the market opened.
“Moving forward, we believe the profit will be better,” Manila-based Ang said in an interview on Monday. Petron is part of the larger San Miguel Corp, one of the Philippines’ biggest companies, with interests ranging from energy and infrastructure to beer. The jump in profit underscores wider margins and improved operating efficiency in the Malaysian downstream business bought from Exxon Mobil Corp for US$610 million in 2011. The company is also in the midst of finalising plans to upgrade the Malaysian refinery to meet Euro-5 and, later, Euro-6 standards for cleaner fuel, Ang said. Operating income at parent Petron in the Philippines may reach between 2 billion pesos (US$39.5 million) to 2.5 billion pesos a month in the third quarter, signaling a turnaround for the company, according to Ang. Petron Malaysia has surged 86% so far this year, making it the best performer on a gauge of Malaysia’s top 100 companies, while Petron has slid 3.6% during the same period in Manila.
