Qatar’s LNG shipping firm Nakilat has seen its net profit for the first half of 2017 drop to QAR 409 million (USD 112.3 million) from QAR 501 million (USD 137.6 million) reported in the same period last year.
The lower profit for the period ended June 30, 2017, was mainly attributed to the lower number of charter hire days in the current period compared to the same period last year, the effect of changing the estimated scrap value of vessels in accordance with applicable International Accounting Standards and the reduced operations of a few joint ventures.
Nakilat added that, on the other hand, the company’s timely repayment of the periodic loan instalments resulted in reduced finance costs.
The firm said that its steady performance “reflects the company’s prudence and effective strategic business plans in relation to the company’s rapid growth and development.”
During the first half of 2017, four vessels were transitioned into Nakilat in-house management, bringing the total vessels operated by Nakilat to 16 to date.
Additionally, Nakilat recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Hoegh LNG, forming a strategic alliance to explore Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) project.
“This collaboration is a strategic move for Nakilat as we are always looking at opportunities to venture into leading-edge technologies and diversifying solutions to deliver clean energy worldwide, which further strengthens Qatar’s position in the energy portfolio,” Abdullah Fadhalah Al Sulaiti, Nakilat Managing Director, said.
Furthermore, the company said that it continues to assess its current investments in relation to profitability “in order to address any risk involved for the company and its shareholders.”
“Although Nakilat anticipates continued challenges, we remain focus on effective and efficient measures of control to steer the company forward,” Al Sulaiti added.