Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) reported a net profit of `4,916.6 crore on a standalone basis for the quarter ended December 31, recording a 110% rise from the very same period a year ago. The state-run oil refining and advertising and marketing organization attributed the boost in profit to inventory gains, stemming from fluctuations in worldwide oil costs and increasing margins of petrochemical solutions. The organization also announced the board’s approval to develop a new refinery Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu, at an estimated gross worth of Rs 31,500 crore.
As retail costs of petroleum solutions are mapped with international prices, a gradual rise of worldwide oil costs in Q3FY21 meant that by the time IOC sold its solutions following processing crude, retail prices had enhanced. The inventory acquire in the fiscal was Rs 2,360 crore against Rs 1,608 crore a year ago, organization sources mentioned. Net profit of IOCL in the quarter would have been larger had its gross refining margin not decreased 11% year-on-year to $2.96/barrel. Owing to increasing worldwide crude costs and really higher government taxes, petrol and diesel are getting sold at record higher prices.
IOC sold 23 million tonne (MT) of petroleum solutions in the quarter, marking an annual drop of 1.6%. “Moving forward, oil demand is expected to rise and be above pre-covid levels in the quarter Jan-Mar 21 and in the next fiscal I expect oil demand to cross FY20 levels,” IOCL chairman, SM Vaidya, mentioned. The company’s income in the period inched up 1.2% annually to Rs 1.47 lakh crore, though costs slipped 1.1% to Rs 1.41 lakh crore. Finance price fell 52% to Rs 628.6 crore, adjusting foreign exchange gains.
IOCL mentioned that the company’s board has authorized the setting up a 9 MT per annum capacity refinery at Nagapattinam. The complicated will create petrol and diesel meeting BS-VI specifications, along with polypropylene. The project will be constructed jointly with IOC subsidiary Chennai Petroleum Corporation (CPCL), with each the entities investing in 25% stake every in the upcoming refinery. The organization is hunting for a strategic companion to invest in the remaining stake. Naftiran Intertrade, an affiliate of the National Iranian Oil Company, owns 15% stake in CPCL. IOC’s board on Friday has also declared an interim dividend of Rs 7.50 per equity share.