Samsung SDI Q4 loss widens on costs from merger

Samsung SDI, a South Korean battery and chemical materials maker, said Monday its fourth-quarter loss sharply increased from the previous quarter mainly due to increased costs from the July merger with a part of its affiliate.

Net loss for the October-December period reached 129 billion won (US$119 million), sharply widening from the 12.9 billion won net loss the previous quarter, the company's regulatory filing showed.

It didn't disclose comparable on-year figures because Samsung SDI merged with the chemical materials division of Cheil Industries, a key Samsung affiliate, in July last year.

Operating profit, however, increased 14.37 percent to 37.2 billion won over the cited period, with sales rising 0.97 percent to 1.91 trillion won.

The company said the widened net loss came mainly from the merger costs. It sold half of its 8 percent stake in Cheil Industries around the time of the merger last year.

Also, the company decided to discontinue its plasma display panel (PDP) production and solar power business, leading to 105 billion won in losses, it added.

Despite the weaker earnings, Samsung SDI plans to increase investments for this year by adding "a substantial amount" to the 480 billion won spent on its capital expenditures in 2014.

"We cannot release an exact figure, but it will be a lot higher than last year's," Samsung SDI Vice President Ike Kim said during the conference call following the earnings disclosure.

He hinted at the possible expansion of the polarizing film production line, and that the company may spend big on polymer batteries mainly used for smartphones and laptops as well as on its vehicle battery business.

Analysts cast a brighter outlook for Samsung SDI, citing high prospects for its sales in mid-to-large batteries, used in hybrid vehicles, due to robust demand expected from European carmakers.

Samsung SDI counts BMW AG, Delphi Automotive Plc., Chrysler and Ford Motor, as its major global clients.

Its battery sales gained 8.2 percent on-quarter to 859.2 billion won in the tallied period.

The company has also been making headway in the global market with its lithium-ion battery-based ESS, or energy storage system, in the last few years, adding to potential upturns in the future as it seeks to further expand its footing in Australia and European countries.

An ESS is used as back-up storage in the event of an energy shortage during peak times or a disaster.

It has seen rapid growth in Europe and Japan where energy costs are high and governments have strict policies on energy efficiency.

Its global ESS market share ranked at the top with 23.6 percent as of end-December 2014, according to market tracker B3.

For all of 2014, Samsung SDI logged a cumulative 80.3 billion won in net loss, dropping in the red from a 147.9 billion won net profit a year ago.

The annual operating profit reached 70.8 billion won, a turnaround from a net loss of 11.3 billion won. Combined revenue soared 58 percent on-year to 5.5 trillion won last year.

Its shares ended up 1.2 percent to 126,500 won on the main bourse on Monday, while the broader KOSPI finished with a marginal 0.02 percent fall. The fourth-quarter business results came after the market closed. (Yonhap)