Water company Hyflux turns to consumer products

SINGAPORE - Water treatment company Hyflux is entering Asia's growing fitness and beauty market, as it seeks other revenue sources.

The company reported on Wednesday a 66 per cent fall in net profit to S$38 million for the nine months ending in September from a year ago, largely due to a high base. Excluding one-off gains from the stake sales in the base year, net profit was largely flat.

Hyflux announced that it will invest $8 million to acquire a 30 per cent stake in Kaqun Europe, a Hungary-based water technology company that produces consumer products using oxygenated water. The joint venture will first sell bottled water, and eventually expand into skincare items.

Revenue for the nine months was S$288.7 million, up 7 per cent from a year ago, thanks to contribution from ongoing construction of a water desalination facility in Oman. Middle East and North Africa made up 32 per cent of the total revenue, up from only 6 per cent last year.

Hyflux said that Middle East, Africa and Singapore are expected to be the main revenue contributors for the next few years. In October, Hyflux and Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries signed an agreement with the Singaporean government to develop and operate the country's sixth waste-to-energy plant.

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