Hurt by the closure of an earthquake-damaged nuclear power plant and higher oil and gas prices, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Wednesday that it posted a group loss of ¥150.1 billion for fiscal 2007 — its first annual group loss in 28 years.
For the year to March 2007, Tepco reported a net profit of ¥298.2 billion. But it booked an extraordinary loss of ¥269.2 billion to repair facilities and for other costs related to the July earthquake, which damaged the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture. The plant remains shut.
"It will be difficult to restart the plant by the summer," Tepco President Tsunehisa Katsumata said at a news conference held to release the company's earnings results.
In an unusual move, Tepco declined to give an annual earnings forecast for this business year to March 2009. It instead only projected continued setbacks — a net loss of ¥40 billion and an operating loss of ¥15 billion — in the first half to Sept. 30 due to the Niigata plant's suspension.
But its revenue is projected to rise 5.9 percent to ¥2.835 trillion for the same period, buoyed by a recent hike in electricity prices that reflects higher fuel prices.
Revenue is expected to rise by 6.8 percent to ¥5.85 trillion for the full year.
Tepco said operating profit dropped 75.2 percent to ¥136.4 billion due to higher crude oil and gas prices. Sales rose 3.7 percent to ¥5.48 trillion as consumers used air conditioners due to extreme weather conditions during the summer and winter, and industrial demand for power also increased.
It plans to pay a dividend of ¥65 per share, down from ¥70 a year earlier.