The capital’s exchange-listed special economic zone (SEZ) announced a more than 18 percent decline in revenue for the first quarter of 2018, citing decreasing land sales as a contributing factor.
According to a filing to the Kingdom’s stock exchange, Phnom Penh SEZ generated $1.17 million in the first quarter, down from $1.34 million in the same period last year.
The company remained optimistic about the rest of the financial year, however.
Lim Chhiv Ho, chairman of the entity, said that “2018 will be another competition year. We are on the final step of some agreements that will be reached during this year.”
The company has long relied on land sales at its Phnom Penh industrial park to ensure overall fiscal viability.
The company is now struggling to increase its revenue from sources other than land sales from 20 percent to 50 percent by 2020.
The revenue from selling land in the first quarter of this year was $192,347 compared to $675,405 last year, according to the report.
The Phnom Penh SEZ Plc group’s overall revenue has fallen every year since 2014, when it posted revenue of more than $20 million. That amount fell to $16.4 million in 2015, $9.2 million in 2016 and $8.8 million in 2017.
The Phnom Penh SEZ Plc is currently developing an SEZ in Poipet, established in late 2016 with an initial investment of $10 million on 66 hectares of land near the Thai border.
Sitting just 8 kilometres east of Poipet’s city centre and around 250 kilometres from the popular Thai sea port of Laem Chabang, the park aims to attract electronic, garment, automobile and plastic industry players seeking easy access to major cities in the region.
