First Energy Bank (FEB), a leading Bahrain-headquartered Islamic bank, said it has registered a net income of $4 million for the third quarter, a significant improvement over last year's $0.9 million.

Announcing the third quarter results on Wednesday, FEB said its net profit for the first nine months surged to $10 million, up 55 per cent compared to $6.5 million achieved last year.

Additionally, FEB recorded a 23 per cent increase in gross income amounting to $28.2 million compared to $22.9 million achieved in the same period last year.

Commenting on the results, Hamad Rashed Al Neaimi, vice-chairman - FEB, said the bank maintains a strong position within the market, mainly due to the financial stability it has exhibited over the course of the past two years.

'The results so far in 2010 are well within our projections and expectations for the bank. We have seen a marked improvement in almost every area of operations, and believe that we will continue to witness growth well into 2011 and beyond,' he remarked.

The bank's total assets rose in 2010 to $1.21 billion and consisted of placements with banks and financial institutions (47 per cent), financing receivables (20 per cent), equity investments (18 per cent) and sukuks (9 per cent). The bank also maintained 56 per cent liquid assets, and a capital adequacy ratio of 73.4 per cent.

Mohamed Ghanem, deputy CEO of First Energy Bank, said: 'Our overall objective is to continue being an industry leader and enter into top quality investment opportunities while at the same time growing access to the global energy sector.'

'This is further underpinned by a very solid investor base and a wealth of confidence in the diversified portfolio that we have always pursued. I do not doubt that we will continue to move from strength to strength throughout the rest of this year, and beyond,” he added.

On its achievements, FEB said it had successfully floated the second “Friede & Goldman Super M2” jackup rig.

Besides this, Menadrill, FEB’s inaugural project specialising in the offshore drilling industry, is now working with Maritime Industrial Services Company (MIS) Sharjah to prepare the two rigs for operations, both of which are in the commissioning phase.

“FEB remains well placed within the regional marketplace, and given our strong financials for the first nine months of 2010, we are ready to take advantage of the numerous opportunities that continue to present themselves, ensuring a strong and steady return for our investors, and an ever more diversified portfolio for the Bank,” Al Neaimi added.

Licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain, FEB operates in accordance with Islamic Sharia’a principles as a financial partner in project development, joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions and the purchase of assets and asset portfolios.

The bank was established with authorized share capital of $2 billion, consisting 2 billion ordinary shares with a par value of $1 each.-TradeArabia News Service