A big fall in sales realisation and rising costs together have pushed The India Cements Ltd. (ICL) into a loss in the final quarter of the just-ended fiscal year.
The company reported a Rs. 30.56 crore loss for the fourth quarter ended March, 2014 as against a profit after tax of Rs. 26.28 crore in the same quarter of the previous year. It reported an operational income of Rs.1,124.71 crore (Rs.1,199.03 crore) for the quarter under review. The loss for the quarter included a non-recurring item of loss on sale of a ship amounting to Rs. 32 crore, according to a company release.
The company had transferred Rs.126.56 crore from general reserves during the quarter, to provide for demand for fuel surcharge adjustment from power distribution firms in Andhra Pradesh, and also meet costs associated with its decision to exit the CDR (corporate debt restructuring) mechanism, the release added.
Addressing a press conference here on Monday, N. Srinivasan, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, said the continued capacity overhang in the South had put tremendous pressure. Lack of demand in Andhra Pradesh, the main market for the company, had only accentuated the plight, he added. With the promise of re-construction of the region in the wake of bifurcation of composite Andhra Pradesh, he was hopeful that the demand would pick up and grow in the region.
To a question, Mr. Srinivasan said, ``people expect the new government (at the centre) >to create climate for expansion .’’ He expected the demand for cement to pick up in the second-half of the current fiscal.
