Birla Corporation's net profit down 23% to Rs 85 crore in March quarter

M P Birla group's flagship company, Birla Corporation Limited, on Tuesday said the cement major posted a net profit of Rs 85 crore for the March 2023 quarter, down by 23 per cent over the corresponding period last year.

The consolidated revenue for the March quarter was Rs 2,512 crore, representing a 7.6 per cent growth.

The consolidated cement sales by volume for the March quarter grew 4.5 per cent year-on-year to 4.44 million tonnes, a record high, and even with the price remaining weak, the realisation was up 4.3 per cent over the same period last year at Rs 5,261 per tonne.

The company stated that it concluded a challenging FY 2022-23 despite sluggish demand in most key markets during the year.

During the year, the biggest challenge for the entire cement industry was an abnormal rise in power and fuel costs, which typically account for around 30 per cent of total production costs for all manufacturers.

For Birla Corporation Limited, power, and fuel costs went up 32 per cent for the full year. Fuel costs had a sequential decline of 3 per cent in the March quarter.

The company managed fuel costs to some extent by ramping up coal extraction from RCCPL's Sial Ghoghri captive coal mine and optimum mixing of fuels such as imported and domestic coal and pet coke.

Production of coal at Sial Ghoghri reached 3,51,565 tonnes during the year, up 72 per cent over the previous year.

Birla Corp consolidated net debt at the end of March rose to Rs 3,659 crore against Rs 3,398 crore a year earlier.