KUALA LUMPUR: Petronas Chemicals Bhd aims to offset the full blown impact of the falling crude oil prices with higher sales and production volume this year.
Despite a volatile and fast-changing market environment, the company’s EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) margin remained strong at 32 per cent with interim dividends declared at RM1.28 billion for the financial year 2014.
Petronas Chemicals chairman Datuk Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin said the group’s solid financial foundation demonstrates its commitment to deliver strong value-added returns to our stakeholders year after year.
"Capital expenditure for this year will be RM3 billion compared to RM3.1 billion last year. Last year's capex was mostly attributed to the statutory turnaround execises we had to carry out in our plants.
"Petronas Chemicals also improved its operational excellence with higher utilisation rate of 80 per cent in 2014 compared with 78 per cent in 2013.
“Excluding gas supply limitation at the methanol facilities, the group's plant utilisation would have been higher at 87 per cent," he said after the annual general meeting held today.