Higher margins fuel HPCL Q4 net
NEW DELHI: Riding on better performance in refining margins and inventory gains, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) on Friday reported a 31 per cent jump in the March 2017 quarter net profit at Rs 1,819 crore. It also announced a bonus issue of one equity share of Rs 10 each for every two equity shares held.
“Profit was higher as a result of better operating efficiencies, higher sales and inventory gains,” Mukesh Kumar Surana, HPCL’s chairman and managing director, said on Friday. He said HPCL posted its highest ever net profit of Rs 6,208.80 crore in 2016-17, up 67 per cent from Rs 3,726.16 crore last year.
The company had an inventory gain of Rs 2,374 crore in 2016-17 against a loss of Rs 1,201crore in 2016-16. During the fourth quarter of 2017, it had an inventory gain of Rs 743 crore against Rs 37 crore during the same period last year. Sales rose to Rs 58,668 crore during the quarter, compared to Rs 48,145 crore in the year-ago period.
HPCL recorded a domestic sale of 34.7 million tonnes (mt) with a growth of 2.6 per cent over the previous year. Petrol sales went up 6.7 per cent, LPG 11 per cent and jet fuel 13.4 per cent. Its performance was better in inventory gain, which was Rs 743 crore in the fourth quarter of 2016-17, against Rs 37 crore gain reported last year.
HPCL earned $7.99 on turning every barrel of crude oil into fuel in the quarter compared to a gross refining margin of $7.51 per barrel, he said.
During 2016-17, the company’s LPG infrastructure was strengthened with commissioning of a 355-km long Mangalore Hassan Mysore Solur LPG Pipeline ahead of its scheduled completion target. HPCL’s Mumbai and Visakh refineries processed the highest ever crude oil of 17.81 mt with a capacity utilisation of 113 per cent in 2016-17 as opposed to a throughput of 17.23 mt in the previous fiscal.
The refineries recorded a combined distillate yield of 75.8 per cent with the highest ever production of petrol at 3.29 mt, diesel of 6.69 mt and lube oil base stock at 431,000.
The company board proposed a final dividend of Rs 1.10 per share, taking the total dividend for the fiscal to Rs 30 per share (ex-bonus). This will result in a total payout of Rs 3,668 crore including dividend distribution tax, he said.