Indian Oil reports net loss of Rs 898 cr in second quarter

OMCs to absorb impact of excise duty hike on petrol and diesel

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the country’s largest fuel retailer, said it reported a net loss of Rs 898 crore in the second quarter of FY15 compared with a net profit of Rs 1,683 crore in the year-ago period.

“The loss was mainly owing to inventory loss of Rs 4,272 crore in the second quarter compared to an inventory gain of Rs 4,635 crore in the corresponding quarter,” B Ashok, chairman and managing director of IOC,told reporters.

The reported loss of inventory was due to a decline in crude oil rates from $111 a barrel to $95 a barrel during the period. “Our gross refining margin stood at a negative $1.95 a barrel during the second quarter against a positive margin of $7.43 a barrel (in the year-ago quarter),” said Ashok.

IOC’s revenue rose 1.3 per cent to Rs 1,11,664 crore during the September quarter.

A K Sharma, director (finance), IOC, said IOC refineries processed 13.40 million tonnes of crude during the quarter compared to 13.34 million tonnes in the corresponding period last year. Also, sales volumes increased 4.5 per cent to 17.12 million tonnes during the July-September period.

The company also said it would absorb the entire impact of the latest hike of Rs 1.50 a litre in excise duty on petrol and diesel. The hike would translate into an annualised impact of Rs 6,500 crore on IOC. Pump rates of the two automobile fuels will remain unchanged until the next review, which is likely on Saturday.