IndianOil net profit plummets 71% to Rs 415 crore
New Delhi   31-Jul-2008
IndianOil largest fuel retailer, on Wednesday reported a 71% dip in its net profit in the first quarter as good refinery margins was not good enough to makeup for the revenue loss on fuel sales. Net profit in April-June quarter plummeted to Rs 415.13 crore from Rs 1,468.41 crore in the year-ago period, IndianOil chairman Sarthak Behuria told reporters here. The company earned USD 16.81 for processing every bar-rel of crude oil, up from $ 10.70 per barrel last year, but it was not good enough to make up for the Rs 413 crore loss it incurred per day on sale of petrol, diesel, domestic LPG and kerosene. Sales, however, rose to Rs 74,496.12 crore from Rs 52,861.96 crore in Ql of 2007-08 fiscal. IndianOil also reported an additional income of Rs 14,276 crore, which included Rs 13,527 crore oil bonds government issued to the company to partly compensate for the losses on fuel sales. "Our net under-realisation (after accounting for oil bonds and assistance from upstream firms nice ONGQ was Rs 7,320.570016," Behuria said. The company had been borrowing at the rate of about Rs 7,500 crore per month to meet the shortfall in working capital caused by losses on fuel sales. Its borrowings have touched Rs 42,500 crore, he said. "By end September, the borrowings are likely to reach Rs 58,000crore." Banks can lend up to Rs 60,000 crore to IndianOil. "Our debt-equity ratio is 0.86:l/he added. Behuria said that IndianOil imported 12.9 million tonne of crude in April-June for $10.9 billion, against 11.9 million tonne oil imported a year ago for $5.6 billion. Last year, crude oil averaged $64 per bar-rel, while this year it cost IndianOil $116 a barrel "We expect prices may come down slightly but certainly not to the level of $100-110 per barrel," he said, adding the current crude price of $122 a barrel may come down by $8-10.