Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering (MHB) on Wednesday posted a RM5.3 million (US$1.36 million) pre-tax loss for the first quarter of this year.
This compares to a pre-tax profit of RM35 million during the first quarter in 2015, a statement by the company reveals.
The company’s revenue reached RM265.7 million, a drop compared to the RM719 million revenue achieved in the corresponding quarter the previous year.
The offshore business unit recorded a drop in revenue from RM616.3 million in the first quarter 2015 to RM136.4 million during the quarter under review.
“The contraction was due to lower backlog as most projects are nearing completion and lesser change orders recognised in the current period,” MHB said.
During the quarter, MHB said it continued its work on the Petronas’ FLNG-2 turret.
The company’s marine business recorded an increase in revenue from RM103.2 million in the first quarter last year to RM120.3 million in the first quarter of 2016, due to higher work value for LNG, LPG, FPSO and FSU category vessels repaired.
MHB’s managing director and CEO Haji Abu Fitri Abdul Jalil expects the group’s offshore business to remain sluggish due to the challenging environment in the upstream segment.
He expects the marine segment to remain positive cushioning the slowdown in the offshore business.
Haji Abu Fitri Abdul Jalil, will leave his position in MHB on April 30, and return back to Petronas. MHB is 66.5 percent owned by LNG shipper MISC in which Petronas has a 62.67 percent stake.
1 RM = 0.26 USD
LNG World News Staff