The state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. will likely post an operating profit for 2024, marking its first operating profit in four years on recent rate hikes, data showed Sunday.
KEPCO is forecast to log an annual operating profit of 8.86 trillion won ($6.07 billion) for last year, swinging from a loss of 4.57 trillion won in 2023, according to data compiled by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency.
For the fourth quarter, the company is expected to report an operating profit of 2.9 trillion won.
KEPCO has reported an operating loss for three consecutive years since 2021, posting a combined loss of 43 trillion won, due to soaring global energy prices sparked by the Russia-Ukraine war and other geopolitical factors.
The company's debt totaled 202.9 trillion won as of June, up 440 billion won from the end of 2023.
To improve its financial soundness, the company has raised the average electricity rate by a combined 50 percent on seven occasions since 2022.
KEPCO is still unlikely to offer dividends to its shareholders, analysts said, noting the company had reported a combined net loss of around 830 billion won for the first nine months of 2024. (Yonhap)
