KOLKATA: Overcoming pandemic-related challenges which impacted operations in April and May, Birla Corporation Limited turned a net profit of Rs 142 crore in the quarter ended 30 June—an increase of 115.2 per cent compared with Rs 66 crore the same period in FY21 and a tad higher than the June quarter of FY2019-20 in spite of volumes bearing brunt of the lockdowns in the first two months of the quarter.
Better management of the lockdown this year, both by the company and the administration, helped mitigate the effects of restrictions imposed in the areas of operations of the company relative to last year.
The firm sold 3.35 million tons of cement in the June quarter, registering a growth of 38.4 per cent over last year, but sales by volume were 8 per cent lower than the pre pandemic levels in Q1FY2019-20. Revenue for the June quarter at Rs 1,758 crore represents a growth of 41.7 per cent over last year, while EBITDA rose 40.1 per cent year-on-year to Rs 353 crore. Cash Profit was higher by 68 per cent compared to FY21 June quarter and just 5 per cent lower than the highest ever Q1 cash profit recorded in 2019-20. Despite significant pressure on costs led by soaring commodity prices, the margins at Rs 1,001 per ton have been ahead by 2 per cent YOY and 7 per cent QOQ, an outcome of the initiatives taken by the management on a proactive basis in all areas of operations. It continued to rationalise operating costs with a sharp focus on plant efficiency, fixed costs and logistics whereby substantial savings were achieved.
Even in challenging market conditions, Birla Corporation Limited has managed to protect realisation by focusing its sales and marketing initiatives on premium products. These offerings have made strident gains in states such as Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. Realisation per ton for the June quarter at Rs 4,933 was up at pre-pandemic levels and 0.5 per cent higher than the same period last year, despite contraction in cement prices in recent months in the central and northern markets.
The company maintained a healthy capacity utilisation of 90 per cent for the June quarter, which was among the best in the industry.