Geothermal energy company Ormat Industries Ltd. (TASE: ORMT) subsidiary Ormat Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ORA) reported strong revenue growth, but a net loss, for the third quarter of 2012 and raised its full-year guidance.
Revenue rose 23% to $136.1 million for the third quarter from $110.8 million for the corresponding quarter. Product revenue more than doubled to $54.7 million for the third quarter from $24 million for the corresponding quarter, but electricity revenue fell 6.2% to $81.5 million, from $86.8 million.
Ormat made a $7.3 million write-down on its Oreg 4 power station to a fair value of $3.6 million, after it was tested for recoverability due to continued low output. As a consequence, the company posted a net loss of $582,000 ($0.01 per share) compared with a net profit of $1 million for the corresponding quarter.
Ormat CEO Yehudit Bronicki raised the company's full-year guidance from of $165-175 million to $175-180 million, but reiterated the guidance for electricity revenue of $325 million. The guidance is well below the analysts' consensus of earnings per share of $0.59 on $501.4 million revenue.
Ormat had $40.5 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term bank deposits at the September and bank credit lines of $487.2 million, of which $85.4 million is unused.
Ormat Technologies' share price rose 4% yesterday to $20.10, giving a market cap of $909 million, but Ormat Industries' share price fell 1% in morning trading on the TASE to NIS 21.23, giving a market cap of NIS 2.5 billion.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 7, 2012
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