19 Mar 2025
Towngas’s annual core operating profit up 5% to HK$5.955 billion with steady growth in city-gas business and strong performance in renewables, maintaining full-year dividend at HK35 cents per share
(19 March 2025) The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited (stock code: 0003, hereinafter referred to as “the Group”) has announced its annual results for 2024. During the year, the Group’s revenue reached HK$55.473 billion, with core operating profit increasing by 5% to HK$5.955 billion. Profit attributable to shareholders of the Group before property revaluation amounted to HK$5.668 billion, representing an increase of 2%. After including property revaluation and other non-operating gains and losses, profit attributable to shareholders of the Group amounted to HK$5.712 billion. Together with the interim dividend of HK12 cents per share paid on 11 September 2024, the total dividend payout for the whole year shall be HK35 cents per share.
The Group’s main profit contributions came from the city-gas and renewable energy businesses. In Hong Kong, despite 2024 being the hottest year on record globally and the continued trend of residents travelling to the mainland for consumption, which affected residential gas usage, industrial and commercial gas consumption maintained growth due to the recovery of aviation and hotel industries, with overall gas sales volume increasing by 0.1%.
Regarding the city-gas business on the Chinese mainland, benefitting from the country’s vigorous development of high and new technology industries and rising urbanisation rates, overall gas sales volume recorded a significant increase of 5% during the year, reaching 36.4 billion cubic metres. Through successful cost pass-through initiatives, the average city-gas dollar margin increased to RMB0.52 per cubic metre, representing an increase of RMB0.05 per cubic metre compared to 2023.
The Group’s subsidiary, Towngas Smart Energy Company Limited, reported strong growth in core operating profit, which increased by 34.5% to HK$1.601 billion. Its renewable energy business saw a fivefold surge in net profit, contributing HK$322 million to the Group’s profit. Meanwhile, the Group operates over 1,000 renewable energy projects in 24 provincial-level regions across the Chinese mainland. With grid-connected photovoltaic capacity reaching 2.3GW and annual electricity generation doubling to 1.83 billion kWh year-on-year, this sector has become a new driver of the Group’s profit growth.
In terms of the green energy businesses, the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant under construction in Malaysia will commence production in the third quarter of 2025, adding new annual production capacity of 300,000 tonnes. The new green methanol plant, in collaboration with Foran Energy Group Company Limited, will begin construction in mid-2025, with initial annual production capacity expected to reach 200,000 tonnes by 2028. Regarding hydrogen energy, the HKSAR Government has promulgated a development blueprint for future hydrogen applications in transport, charging piles and construction sites. The Group will actively participate in advancing the development of these related businesses.
The global situation is complex with ongoing instability and subdued growth in the global economy, accumulating financial risks, de-globalisation and trade fragmentation, as well as rising risks of geopolitical conflicts, all of which have contributed to a new normal and presented new challenges. In response, the Group will continue to develop a new growth model that focuses on strengthening its core competitiveness and vigorously developing green energy and new technologies to meet these new challenges and opportunities.
For details of the results, please refer to the 2024 Annual Results Announcement published on the Company’s website at
www.towngas.com and the HKEXnews website at
www.hkexnews.hk.
Dr the Honourable Lee Shau-kee, GBM, the former Chairman of the Group, passed away on 17 March 2025.
Dr Lee served as Chairman of the Group from 1983 to 2019, during which time he achieved remarkable success and under his outstanding leadership, Towngas was recognised as the “Company of the Year” in the gas industry. Dr Lee earned widespread acclaim for his approach to interpersonal relations and his unique investment strategies. As one of Hong Kong’s leading business figures, Dr Lee made significant contributions to Hong Kong’s economic prosperity. He was also a highly respected philanthropist, who donated generously to many major educational and community initiatives in Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland and overseas. The Board will continue to work on furthering the mission laid down by Dr Lee, and is of the view that his passing will not have any impact on the operations of the Group.
The Board expresses its deepest sorrow at the passing of Dr Lee.
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For media enquiries, please contact:
The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited
Ms May Tam
Assistant Corporate Affairs Manager
Tel: 2963 3475 / 9192 0062
Email: tam.may@towngas.com |
Ms Kara Kwong
Assistant Corporate Affairs Manager
Tel: 2963 3497 / 6698 3357
Email: kara.kwong@towngas.com |