India Cements posts consolidated net profit of Rs 58.5 crore in Q1

India Cements posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 58.5 crore during the first quarter of the financial year ending June 30, compared to a loss of Rs 87 crore in the April to June quarter of FY24.

The company registered a 29 per cent decline in revenue during the period under review to Rs 1,027 crore, versus Rs 1,436 crore during Q1 of FY24. The company posted an Ebitda loss of Rs 24.6 crore versus Ebitda of Rs 8.3 crore on a year-on-year basis. During the quarter, the company had an exceptional credit of Rs 240.7 crore. The rise in net profit is mainly due to the divestment of its grinding unit at Parli during the quarter.

Capacity utilisation for the company was adversely affected due to the free fall in cement prices, resulting in a suboptimal operating performance for the quarter. The promoters and members of the promoter group of the company entered into a share purchase agreement in July 2024 with UltraTech Cement to sell their stake of equity shares in the company at a price of Rs 390 per equity share, subject to necessary regulatory approvals.

The cement and clinker volume for the quarter was 1.961 million tonnes compared to 2.666 million tonnes in the same quarter of the previous year, with a drop of more than 26 per cent. The overall blended cement proportion was 61 per cent compared to 59 per cent in the first quarter of the previous year, while heat consumption was kept under check at the same level as the previous year.

There was a marginal reduction in power consumption by 2 units during the quarter, but the drop in volume and reduction in net plant realisation by 8 per cent resulted in a negative operating performance for the quarter under review.