(LEAD) KEPCO Q3 net losses deepen on higher fuel costs

Earnings 14:22 November 11, 2022

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SEOUL, Nov. 11 (Yonhap) -- The state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. said Friday its net losses deepened in the third quarter from a year earlier on higher fuel costs and limited electricity rate hikes.

The consolidated net losses widened to 7.53 trillion won (US$5.66 billion) in the July-September period, compared with a loss of 936.7 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.

It is the largest ever third-quarter net loss the utility firm has logged so far.

It is also far higher than its second-quarter net loss of 6.52 trillion won and neared the worst ever quarterly figure of 7.79 trillion won. The firm has logged quarterly losses for six consecutive quarters.

Sales rose 14.7 percent on-year to 51.77 trillion won in the third quarter, but operating expenses jumped 59.1 percent on-year to 73.6 trillion won, leading the firm to remain in the red.

During the first nine months of this year, KEPCO logged a net loss of 21.83 trillion won, an all-time high, the company said. A year earlier, the company reported a net loss of 1.12 trillion won.

The third-quarter loss came as KEPCO was forced to have put the lid on electricity rates amid the government's efforts to curb surging consumer prices and the COVID-19 pandemic.

South Korea is struggling to rein in soaring consumer prices, which spiked 5.7 percent in October from a year earlier.

KEPCO's snowballing losses have sparked concerns over its financial soundness, prompting the state utility company to seek self-rescue measures, including asset sales.