KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 22): Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd's (PCG) net profit for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2021 (3QFY21) jumped more than threefold to RM1.96 billion from RM471 million a year earlier, driven by higher petrochemical product prices.

In a bourse filing on Monday (Nov 22), PCG said revenue for the quarter rose 67% to RM5.8 billion from RM3.5 billion on the back of higher crude oil prices, improved global demand and a tight supply environment.

It declared a special dividend of 10 sen per share, amounting to RM800 million, to be paid on Dec 30.

For the cumulative nine months, PCG's net profit surged to RM5.28 billion from RM1.16 billion earlier, on the back of revenue RM16.05 billion versus RM10.53 billion previously.

In a separate statement, PCG managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Sazali Hamzah said that the group initially expected the market recovery to be moderate from 3QFY21 onwards.

“However, product prices remained relatively high following Hurricane Ida in August that disrupted supply in North America and prolonged downtime in Middle Eastern urea plants amid demand recovery as Covid-19 restrictions eased.

Although polymer prices were lower by about 5% compared to 2QFY21, urea and methanol prices grew strongly by about 25% and 10% respectively.

“Through our operational and commercial excellence, we performed well by optimising our production and sales against market movements,” he said.

On its outlook, Sazali said current market conditions augur well for PCG.

“We may see some reduction in demand due to the resurgence of Covid-19 infections and China’s policy to reduce energy intensity and limit total energy consumption.

“Nonetheless, other offsetting factors such as the natural gas shortage in Europe and OPEC+ production decisions may continue to support crude oil prices and, in turn, the prices of our products,” he said.

At the midday break on Monday, PCG was traded unchanged at RM8.31, valuing it at RM66.48 billion.