Vale Indonesia Earns a Profit of 98.1 Million US Dollars, Up 207 Percent in the First Quarter of 2023

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - PT Vale Indonesia Tbk (INCO) posted a net profit of USD 98.1 million in the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 207 percent compared to the same period's net profit in 2022.

"This increase in net profit was supported by the nickel price which is at a favorable level," said Febriany Eddy, CEO and President Director of Vale, Thursday, April 27.

He continued, Vale's nickel matte production in the first quarter was 21 percent higher compared to the same period last year as the rebuilding of Furnace 4 was completed last year.

"We also benefited from the decline in energy commodity prices, but that did not dampen our determination to continue to make improvements in all aspects of the business," continued Febriany.

He further explained that the Group's average realized price in the first quarter rose by 18% compared to the last quarter's price, which pushed Revenue 19% higher compared to the last quarter.

Then the group's Cost of Revenue (BPP) fell 9 percent from USD 251.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 to USD 228.2 million in the first quarter of 2023.

"Apart from the positive contribution of lower commodity prices, cost reduction was also driven by strong discipline in terms of cost management and ongoing efforts to increase productivity in our business processes," he explained.

Since September 2022, in anticipation of a significant increase in coal prices in 2022, the Company will continue to use High Sulfur Fuel Oil (HSFO) as the main energy source for burners in the first quarter of 2023.

Meanwhile, Vale also posted EBITDA of USD $173.58 million and spent around USD 58.2 million for capital expenditure in the first quarter of 2023.

Following the laying of the first stone for the Morowali Project in February 2023, the company and partners continue to carry out work in the field, both at the mine site and at the processing plant.

"We estimate that we will spend USD 132.2 million for sustainable capital expenditure and USD 585 million for growth projects, both mining and equity participation throughout 2023," said Febriany.

The company's cash and cash equivalents as of March 31 2023 were USD 717.3 million, up 13 percent compared to December 31 2022 which amounted to USD 634 million.