KEPCO swings to loss in Q1 on higher costs

By Nam Kwang-sik
SEOUL, April 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's state-run Korea Electric Power Corp.
(KEPCO) said Thursday that it swung to a loss in the first quarter from a year
earlier as a weak local currency increased fuel costs.
Net losses came to 882 billion won (US$664.7 million) in the January-March
period, compared with a profit of 300 billion won a year ago, KEPCO said in a
regulatory filing.
Revenue, however, rose 4.3 percent annually to 8.36 trillion won during the same
period. Operating losses at the power company increased to 1.76 trillion won in
the first quarter from 219 billion won a year ago.
Shares of KEPCO fell 0.75 percent to 26,550 won as of 1:30 p.m. on the Seoul
bourse.
The won fell about 9.5 percent against the U.S. dollar in the first quarter of
this year.
Hit by a surge in fuel costs stemming from a weak won, KEPCO recorded a net loss
of 2.95 trillion won last year, compared with a profit of 1.55 trillion won a
year ago.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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