MISC Berhad has reported a year-on-year increase in profit of nearly 50% to MYR 391.3m ($93.5m) thanks largely to the completion of a major offshore project.
The Malaysian tanker owner's offshore business saw a near two-and-half fold increase in operating profit to MYR 243.3m while revenue more than tripled to MYR 749.7m.
MISC attributed the dramatic improvement mainly from the recognition of revenue from the conversion of a floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) in the quarter.
The shipowner's gas carrier arm also posted a significant year-on-year improvement in its financial performance following deliveries of six very large ethane carriers (VLECs) at the end of last year.
Revenue of MYR 741.2m was MYR 127.8m or 20.8% higher than a year ago, while operating profit was up 31.3% to MYR 313.7m.
In contrast, MISC's tanker arm reported a weaker third quarter with revenue down 8.8% to MYR 775.9m resulting from lower freight rates in the current quarter and lower-earning days following vessel disposals and redeliveries.
As a result, the tanker arm recorded an operating loss for the quarter of MYR 8.3m compared to the corresponding quarter in 2020 when it posted a profit of MYR 20.1m.
Looking ahead, MISC said the prolonged impacts of the pandemic and OPEC+ production cuts continue to have an adverse effect on the petroleum shipping market, especially in the crude sector.
"In the short term, the tanker market is expected to see some modest improvement towards winter, although risks to the market outlook still remain," MISC said.
"Meanwhile, the medium-term prospects remain positive for the tanker market, with likely improvements focused towards the second half of 2022 whereby tanker demand is projected to return close to 2019 levels, driven by OPEC+ phased supply increases and continued economic recovery."
MISC chief executive Yee Yang Chien said: "Our third-quarter results highlight the full value of our portfolios as our revenues continue to strengthen.
"The steps we have taken showcase our capacity in building strong business momentum, obtaining the maximum possible value and driving resilience in this dynamic market environment.
"Moving deeper into post-pandemic economic recovery, we are positioned well to execute our long-term strategy for profitable growth as we advance towards our goals for a decarbonised future."
MISC, which has a fleet of approximately 100 owned and in-chartered vessels, said it would continue to focus on building long-term secured income through its niche shuttle tanker business and rejuvenation of its fleet with eco-friendly LNG dual-fuel tankers.
