The continued depreciation in rupee value and inadequate compensation for selling subsidised petroleum products took a toll of the balance-sheet of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) with the company on Tuesday reporting a net loss of Rs.3,093.23 crore for the April-June quarter.
IOC lost Rs.13,625 crore on selling diesel, cooking gas (LPG) and kerosene at subsidised rates during the April-June period. Of this, the government compensated Rs.4,261.29 crore by way of cash subsidy. Another Rs.8,151.77 crore came as additional assistance from upstream firms such as ONGC. “We had a net under-recovery of Rs.1,211.67 crore,” IOC Chairman R. S. Butola told reporters here.
He said the 11 per cent dip in rupee value against the dollar led to a foreign exchange loss of Rs.4,024.10 crore in the first quarter, up from Rs.3,187.01 crore in the same period last fiscal. Profit was also down because of one-time charge of Rs.400 crore towards employee benefit arrears.
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“We had positives on refinery margins and petrochemical business,” he added. The company earned $1.67 on turning every barrel of crude oil into fuel as compared to a negative gross refining margin of $4.81 in the same period a year ago.
Turnover rose to Rs.110,466.61 crore in April-June of 2013-14, from Rs.96,860.69 crore in the year-ago period.