Punj Lloyd Q1 net loss widens to Rs 598 cr

Engineering conglomerate Punj Lloyd today reported widening of its net loss to Rs 597.84 crore for the April-June quarter on sharp decline in income.
It had reported a net loss of Rs 363.92 crore for the first quarter of the previous fiscal.
Its total income from operations dipped sharply by 40.98 per cent to Rs 657.35 crore during the quarter under review, from Rs 1,113.83 crore in the same quarter of the last fiscal, the company said in a BSE filing.
Total expenses for the period stood at Rs 1,050.58 crore during the quarter against Rs 1,445.58 crore a year-ago.

Chairman, Punj Llyod Group Atul Punj said: "This quarter's financial performance has seen some impact due to client related issues in the offshore business and also on account of incremental working capital requirement to support the cash flows. With the banks and client issues having been resolved now, the Company will show a significant improvement progressively in the subsequent quarters."
He added, "We are seeing a lot of opportunities in the defence business and with our capabilities, we are confident of being a major player in this sector and making the Government's 'Make in India' programme a reality."

The company has been successful in a number of bids in the current quarter in the energy and infrastructure verticals, with many more in the pipeline, he said.

The company said it incurred "certain cost overruns amounting to 73,580 lakh (Rs 735.80 crore), "arising due to design changes and consequent changes in the scope of work Heera Redevelopment project with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation."
It said it is hopeful of a settlement of dispute soon.
"Company's branch in Thailand, have invited attention in their in their report on financial reports for the quarter ended June 30, 2015 on recoverability of claims aggregating to Rs 39,109 lakhs (Rs 391 crore) and encashment of the performance bond amounting to Rs 17,108 lakhs (Rs 171.08 crore) by the customer of a project of that branch."

It said the management is taking appropriate steps for recovery of that amount.
The group said its order backlog stands at Rs 19,884 crores.
The Punj Lloyd Group offers EPC services in energy and infrastructure along with engineering and manufacturing capabilities in the defence sector.
The company's stock closed at Rs 31.55, up 2.94 per cent on BSE.