CESC Q4 profit dips 6.8% on higher tax despite rise in demand, revenue

India's CESC, a power generation and distribution company, reported a fall in fourth-quarter profit on Thursday, hurt by a jump in tax expenses amid higher power demand.

The company's consolidated net profit fell 6.8 per cent year-on-year to Rs 373 crore ($43.6 million) for the three months ended March 31.

CESC's total tax expenses jumped to Rs 810 lakh from Rs 400  lakh a year ago. The company's profit before tax rose 11.2 per cent.

Revenue from operations climbed 14.5 per cent to Rs 3,877 crore.  Power demand increased steadily during the January-March period as above-normal temperatures led to higher electricity usage.

Analysts at Elara Capital had expected a boost to CESC's fourth-quarter revenue due to increased power generation and reduced distribution losses. The company's distribution segment likely benefited from lower aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses, the brokerage added.

AT&C losses are a combination of energy losses, including due to theft and billing inefficiency, as well as commercial losses, which include payment defaults and collection inefficiency.

Peer Tata Power reported a surge in fourth-quarter profit driven by strong power demand, while Torrent Power's profit more than doubled on lower costs.