The Hindu Business Line : JK Lakshmi Q4 net up 11% on better sales

Mumbai, May 14 JK Lakshmi Cement, the flagship of JK Group, has posted 11 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 68 crore (Rs 61 crore) for the quarter ended March 31, 2008. Sales improved 10.64 per cent to Rs 291 crore (Rs 263 crore). Expenditure in the quarter under review rose 14 per cent to Rs 204 crore (Rs 178 crore).

The company has announced a final dividend 15 pr cent (Rs 1.50 per equity share) for the year ended March 2008.

For the financial year net profit was up 26 per cent at Rs 224 crore, while sales jumped 32 per cent to Rs 1,286 crore.

“The rising costs of major inputs would have squeezed the margins, but for the improvements in efficiencies and cost savings,” said Ms Vinita Singhania, Managing Director, JK Lakshmi Cement.

During the year, the company was able to reduce power consumption to 79 kwh per tonne from 83 kwh per tonne of cement in the previous year. Similarly the coal consumption was down to 80 kg per tonne of cement from 84 kg per tonne.

Considerable savings in the power cost was achieved due to stabilization of the company’s 36 MW captive power plant commissioned in the year.

The company is setting up a greenfield cement plant of 2.7 million tonne in Chattisgarh with an investment of about Rs 1,100 crore. “The necessary approvals for the mining lease etc have been obtained. The project is scheduled to be commissioned by 2011,” it said.

In the current year, the company plans to increase production to 5 million tonne from 3.6 million tonne. The project is likely to be completed by end of current calendar year, the company said.