Hindustan Zinc Q2 net up 1.47% at Rs 949 cr

Vedanta Group firm Hindustan Zinc today posted 1.47 rise in profit at 948.72 crore for the second quarter of the current fiscal, as against the year-ago period, on improved demand and rising prices.

"The increase was primarily on account of higher volumes and improved London Metal Exchange prices," the company said in a statement here.

Hindustan Zinc had a net profit of Rs 934.95 crore in the same quarter last fiscal.
    
The revenues moved up in Q2 FY11 to Rs 2,162.8 crore, around 21 per cent, as compared to Rs 1,789.5 crore in the same period last fiscal.
    
"The positive impact of higher volumes and improved LME prices was partly offset by the impact of increase in coke and coal costs, increase in commodity prices and higher stripping cost at mines," the company added.
    
Hindustan Zinc sold its zinc and lead, during the quarter, at an average price of $2,013 per tonne and $2,032 per tonne respectively, compared with $1,757 per tonne and $1,925 per tonne, in the year-ago quarter.
    
The company said that in Q2 it achieved highest ever zinc and lead production at 2.04 lakh tonnes, up around 6 per cent compared with last fiscal's Q2, on account of stabilisation of the new concentrator at Rampura Agucha mines in Rajasthan.
    
Besides, its zinc refined metal production was highest ever at 1.76 lakh tonnes, up around 25 per cent from the corresponding quarter in FY10.
    
"The increase in the production was primarily on account of contribution from the new 210 kilo tonnes per annum hydro zinc smelter at the Dariba (Rajasthan), which contributed around 39,000 tonnes in Q2," it further said.
    
On the expansion front, Hindustan Zinc said its lead smelter with an annual production capacity of 100 kilo tonnes is likely to go on stream during October-December 2010.
    
On silver production the company said, "We remain on track to achieve a capacity of 500 tonnes of silver by FY 2013."
    
The company said it had cash and cash equivalents of Rs 12,213 crore at the end of September, which will partly help in expansion.