GMR Infra net loss rises threefold

GMR Infrastructure, the infrastructure developer, has posted a threefold increase in net loss at Rs 179 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, compared to the net loss of Rs 62.5 crore for the corresponding period last year. Income from operations moved up marginally at Rs 2,398 crore, up 18 per cent.

The company, in the red for many quarters, said the loss in the current quarter is due to the one-time foreign exchange gain of Rs 51 crore during the corresponding previous quarter. The loss of such a gain was compounded by the increase in expenditure by 18 per cent, while the interest payout, too, shot up 24 per cent at Rs 485 crore. The company is under a debt pile of Rs 33,000 crore, up 18 per cent during the past six months, with a three-fold gearing.

Flagship project Delhi International Airport continued to bleed and posted a net loss of Rs 41 crore, taking the accumulated losses to Rs 1,625 crore, even as the company was to come to terms with the increased user development fee eroding its net worth. The company is facing an uncertain future at the airport it is managing at Male, while a project at Turkey is also losing resources.

GMR’s power segment too is under severe duress as, as much as 800 MW of its generating capacity in the East Coast is based on gas and the availability of which has been scarce. “While the company has deferred the expansion of one of its plants, it has been forced to revamp its debt for the other power project, leading to substantial idle assets, leading to sharp spike in capital employed,” the company said.