Citicore Energy REIT net hits P1.43B

By Ed Paolo Salting – April 1, 2025
from The Manila Times

CITICORE Energy REIT Corp. (Creit) on Monday said net income in 2024 rose 2 percent to P1.43 billion from P1.40 billion a year earlier, reflecting a stable performance due to guaranteed base leases supported by seven properties acquired in 2023.

Creit, which is sponsored by by Citicore Renewable Energy Corp. (CREC) and is the country’s first renewable energy REIT, told the stock exchange that earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization grew 4 percent to P1.80 billion.

Revenues rose 5 percent to P1.89 billion from P1.80 billion in 2023, it added, partly due to higher contract renewal rates.

“Our continued stability in 2024 reflects our resiliency amidst fluctuating market conditions and current challenges faced by traditional REITs,” Creit President and CEO Oliver Tan said in a statement.

“Our operation in a crisis-proof and essential industry has translated to consistent, above-market dividends for our investors in our three years since listing,” he added.

The company maintained its gross leasable area (GLA) at 7.1 million square meters (sqm), with 5.1 million sqm of solar farms being built on the land part of CREC’s “5GW in 5 years” target.

Creit said that its assets were backed by a “100-percent occupancy all year-round and a weighted average lease expiry of 20.44 years,” ensuring stable operations and sustainable income.

The REIT declared a dividend of 20.2 centavos per share for 2024, up slightly from the prior year’s 19.9 centavos, based on the stock’s closing price of P3.05 per share on Dec. 27, 2024, the last trading day of the year.

On Monday, Creit shares added P0.02, or 0.64 percent, to settle at P3.16 apiece while CREC’s were unchanged at P3.70 per amid a 0.54-percent rise in the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.