NLEX Corp.’s net earnings down 44% in nine months

NLEX Corp. said Monday net income fell 44 percent in the first nine months from a year ago after Luzon was placed under the enhanced community quarantine in the second quarter.

The operator of North Luzon Expressway and Subic-Clark Tarlac Expressway declared a net income of P2.6 billion in the nine-month period, down from P4.6 billon in the same period last year.

“The decrease in income was attributed to the lower traffic volume as a result of the imposition of Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine starting March 16, 2020,” the company said.

The company reported total revenues of P7.8 billion in the first nine months, lower by 30 percent than P11.2 billion booked in the same period last year.

NLEX attributed he decrease in revenues to lower traffic volume during the government’s implementation of the Luzon-wide ECQ to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company said that as of Sept. 30, 2020, average daily traffic in NLEX reached 188,830 vehicle entries, while average daily traffic in SCTEX hit 42,350 vehicle entries.

It said that compared to last year, the daily average vehicle entries in NLEX and SCTEX were down by 29.3 percent and 38.4 percent, respectively.

The company’s operating revenues were derived mainly from toll in NLEX and SCTEX. It also generated income from advertising placements, fees from toll service facilities and rental revenues generated by the company-owned NLEX Drive & Dine through wholly owned subsidiary NLEX Ventures Corp.

NLEX spans about 102 kilometers or 573-lane kilometers and served an average of 270,718 vehicles per day in 2019. NLEX is the main infrastructure backbone that connects Metro Manila to Central and Northern Luzon.

SCTEX is a 91-km, 2×2 expressway stretching from Subic-Tipo to La Paz, Tarlac, connecting the special economic zones in Subic and Clark, Olongapo City and Tarlac City.

Article and Photo originally posted by Manila Standard last November 30, 2020 7:50pm and written by Darwin G. Amojelar.