CHENNAI: Rising fuel prices dented profits for India’s largest domestic carrier by market share —IndiGo. IndiGo’s parent company, InterGlobe Aviation saw a decline in net profit by 25 per cent to Rs 440 crore for the quarter ended March. The airline has also announced its intentions to enter the UDAN scheme and start flying on regional routes, a turnaround in strategy.
For the entire fiscal year, the company posted a profit of Rs 1,659 crore, a drop of 16.5 per cent. However, revenue from operations for the full fiscal grew by 15.1 per cent to Rs 18,580 crore for the year ended March 2017.
“For the last quarter, despite a 38 per cent year over year increase in fuel prices, we have reported a profit after tax of Rs 440 crore. We are also pleased to report that our board of directors has recommended a dividend of Rs 34 per share for the fiscal year 2017,” said IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh.
On the entry into the regional segment, the carrier has signed an agreement with ATR for the purchase of 50 ATR 72-600 aircraft and expects to operate turboprops by the end of this year.
Ghosh pointed out that the airline plans to build a nation-wide regional network and connect cities that have not benefitted from the growth in Indian aviation.