Seoul: South Korea's state-run Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) announced on Tuesday a return to profitability in the third quarter, attributed to a 6.8 percent increase in utility bills implemented in August for households. According to Yonhap News Agency, KOGAS reported a net profit of 155.2 billion won (US$110.8 million) for the July-September period, a significant turnaround from a loss of 162.8 billion won reported in the same period last year. The company's operating profit for the third quarter surged by 90.9 percent year-on-year, reaching 439.7 billion won, while sales increased by 2.8 percent to 8.1 trillion won. "In the third quarter, operating profit improved, as one-off costs, which weighed down performance in 2023, were resolved," the company stated. Despite these improvements, KOGAS highlighted ongoing challenges, noting that utility bills remain below production costs. The company also pointed out a growing amount of uncollected payments, referring to the costs of gas purchases not yet recovered thro ugh billing. KOGAS has been grappling with financial challenges due to insufficient utility cost adjustments in response to global energy market fluctuations, exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The company's shares were trading at 40,150 won on the main bourse at 2:02 p.m., marking a 0.38 percent increase from the previous session. The third-quarter financial report was released during market hours.