Nalco posts over Rs 7,200 cr turnover

Metal production falls marginally in 2012-13

National Aluminium Company (Nalco) has posted its best ever turnover and foreign exchange earnings in 2012-13 bolstered by record bauxite production and 46.5 per cent surge in aluminium exports.

The navratna company registered sales turnover in excess of Rs 7,200 crore and recorded foreign exchange earnings worth Rs 3,400 crore.

Despite delay in renewal of its Panchpatmalli mining lease, bauxite production by Nalco stood at a record 5.41 million tonne in 2012-13, 8.3 per cent higher than 5.003 million tonne in 2011-12. Nalco also bettered its alumina hydrate production in 2012-13 at 1.80 million tonne, 6.81 per cent growth over 1.68 million tonne posted in previous fiscal.

In 2012-13, Nalco sold 983,191 tonne of alumina hydrate, 16.71 per cent increase over 842,396 tonne in 2011-12. Aluminium exports of the company jumped 46.5 per cent to reach 144,161 tonne from 98,399 tonne in the same period.

The firm’s alumiuium production, however, dipped marginally from 413,000 tonne to 403,000 tonne on coal scarcity and dwindling LME (London Metal Exchange) prices of the metal that forced the company to cut its metal production to some extent.

“It was not commercially viable to produce more metal using expensive imported coal,” said Nalco chairman and managing director (CMD) Anshuman Das.

The net power generation by the company’s captive power plant at Angul, the site of its aluminium smelting facility, stood at 6,076 million units for 2012-13.