The stoppage of supply of natural gas to its plant at Taloja that has brought production of fertilisers to a halt since May 15, has hit the Q1 profitability of Deepak Fertilizers and Petrochemicals Ltd.

The Pune-based firm posted a net profit of Rs 39.85 crore in the first quarter of the current fiscal versus Rs 42.73 crore in the same period of last year, translating into a 7 per cent decline year on year.

Due to growth in its trading operations, DFPCL’s income from operations however grew to Rs 945 crore from and Rs 743 crore in Q1 14, a rise of 27 per cent.

Fertilizers contribute 30-35 per cent to the company’s topline.

Addressing shareholders at the company’s 34th AGM here, CMD Shailesh Mehta called the stoppage abrupt, sudden and discriminatory. “We have filed a writ in the Delhi high Court and are also in discussions with the (Petroleum) ministry, and we think the decision will be rethought,” he added.

Outlining growth plans in the years ahead, Mehta said that DFPCL will invest Rs 55 crore in a 30,000 MT plant for Bentonite Sulphur in Panipat. To be commissioned in late 2015, this facility will serve the markets of Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

DFPCL is also investing Rs 550 crore to double its NPK plant capacity to 6,00,000 MT through brown field expansion that is currently underway at Taloja.

This enhanced capacity is expected to be in place latest by early 2016 and will enable the launch of complex fertilizers and fortification by micro nutrients like boron, zinc and copper.

On the bourses, the company’s stock tanked on the announcement of the results and was trading at the day’s low of Rs 164.50 towards the end of the day’s trading, a decline of nearly 7.2 per cent.

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