Numaligarh refindery registers 157% growth in net profit

Assam-based Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL), a subsidiary of Bharat Petroleum, has registered a 157 per cent growth in its net profit for the 2013-14 fiscal.

At the company's 21st annual general meeting (AGM), NRL declared dividend of 16 per cent (Rs 1.60 per fully paid share of Rs 10 each) for the year 2013-14 on the paid up share capital. The company has achieved a sales turnover of Rs 9,872 crore; recording a growth of 13 per cent, while the net profit increased by 157 per cent  to Rs 371 crore. The basic earning per share was Rs 5.04 as against Rs 1.96 in the previous year.

On the physical front, NRL has recorded 92.16 per cent distillate yield during 2013-14, the "highest" among PSU refineries in the country, claimed the company. Crude throughput during 2013-14 was 2,613 TMT, higher than the previous year by 5 per cent and corresponding to 87 per cent capacity utilisation. Specific energy consumption - a mark of energy efficiency in operations, was limited to the level of  53.6 MBN. Production of motor spirit (petrol) was maximised to reach the level of 309 TMT. The gross refining margin (GRM) during 2013-14 was $12.09 per bbl.

"Our excellence in refinery operations has been exemplified through achievement of highest distillate yield among all PSU oil refineries in the country for the third consecutive year," said S Varadarajan, chairman and managing director (CMD) of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), who presided over the AGM at the capacity of chairman, NRL.

With a dividend of 16 per cent announced at the AGM, the total dividend to be paid by NRL to its shareholders, namely BPCL, Oil India Limited (OIL) and Assam government would amount to Rs 117.70 crore. The Assam government will receive Rs 14.53 crore as dividend for its equity of 12.35 per cent in NRL.

On the marketing front, out of 2,550 TMT of petroleum products marketed by the company during 2013-14, 24 per cent were sold within North-East while balance 76 per cent was sold outside the region.

In terms of project implementation, the naphtha splitter project was successfully commissioned in November 2013. The naphtha produced would cater to the needs of the Assam gas cracker project once it gets commissioned. With the commissioning of the wax project shortly, NRL claimed it would emerge as a leading wax producer in the country. The company is also in the process of establishing its marketing network for wax through appointment of nine distributors across the country.

Faced with the dual challenge of sub-economic refining capacity and declining trend in domestic crude oil supplies from North-Eastern oil fields, the company is "actively pursuin" a proposal of refinery expansion from 3.0 to 9.0 MMTPA at an estimated cost of Rs 16,600 crore, and sourcing incremental crude through imports. Imported crude oil is envisaged to be transported from an eastern port to Numaligarh through a new pipeline.