The Aditya Birla Group company reported a consolidated profit of ₹2,195 crore for the quarter, ₹10 crore less than that a year ago. Consolidated revenue declined nearly 4% to ₹54,169 crore due to lower prices of aluminium on the London Metal Exchange.
The company’s power and fuel costs during the quarter declined more than a quarter due to lower coal prices and higher availability of linkage coal. This helped improve earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) nearly 5% to ₹5,612 crore.
EBITDA margin improved 90 basis points to 10.4%. A basis point is a hundredth of a percentage point.
Revenue from the company’s American subsidiary Novelis, which accounts for three-fifths of the consolidated revenue, declined more than a tenth to ₹33,961 crore. The American unit reported an EBITDA of ₹3,998 crore, down 1% year-on-year.
“Novelis steadily continues on the recovery path,” said Satish Pai, managing director, Hindalco.
Delivery of aluminium cans was improving following a sharp dip in tandem with recessionary scares in the world’s largest economy. Major consumers of cans were de-stocking their inventories, which hit the company’s sales in preceding quarters.The company reported its highest-ever copper sales during the quarter. Revenue from the segment increased 29% year-on-year to ₹12,441 crore. Segment EBITDA was up a fifth to ₹653 crore.
Pai said he expects the momentum of the September quarter to continue in the ongoing quarter. “We should have a couple of good quarters coming up now,” he said.
While the company’s energy costs will increase on slightly more expensive coal, it will be offset by other input costs declining, he said. The company had earlier announced an investment of ₹8,000 crore in a new alumina refinery in Odisha.
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