Mahanagar Gas Q4 results: Profit dips 4.8% on rising costs, higher volumes

Indian city gas distributor Mahanagar Gas posted a 4.8 per cent fall in quarterly profit on Tuesday, as expenses cut into steady growth in volumes. 

The state-backed natural gas distributor reported a profit after tax of 2.52 billion rupees ($29.9 million) for the quarter ended March 31, down from 2.65 billion a year earlier. 

Revenue from operations grew 18.6 per cent to 20.39 billion, while total expenses rose 24.2 per cent. 

KEY CONTEXT 

Indian city gas companies like Mahanagar Gas, Indraprastha Gas and Gujarat Gas have been facing earnings pressure for the last couple of quarters due to reduced supply of cheaper, government-regulated APM (Administered Price Mechanism) gas.  This has forced them to buy more expensive gas from the open market, squeezing their profit margins. 

 

Mahanagar Gas, however, posted a 12.3 per cent rise in total sales volumes, driven primarily by strong growth in its compressed natural gas segment. 

Peer Indraprastha Gas reported a 9 per cent fall in its quarterly profit from a year ago, hurt by higher expenses.