Deepak Fertilisers And Petrochemicals (DEEPAKFERT) Q4 98/99 earnings summary

Executive summary

• FY99 sales including other income rose to Rs. 52,179.21 lacs from Rs. 41,420.01 lacs; net profit reached Rs. 5,436.12 lacs versus Rs. 5,114.55 lacs.

• Plants ran at high utilisation; ammonia and methanol production reached record levels, and a 20% equity dividend was recommended, up from 15%.

Financial highlights

• Net sales were Rs. 50,992.21 lacs versus Rs. 40,512.60 lacs; other income was Rs. 1,187.00 lacs versus Rs. 907.41 lacs.

• Profit before tax was Rs. 6,286.03 lacs versus Rs. 6,018.11 lacs; net profit was Rs. 5,436.12 lacs versus Rs. 5,114.55 lacs.

• Profit before extraordinary items was Rs. 8,114.32 lacs versus Rs. 8,402.16 lacs; extraordinary items, net of tax credit, were Rs. 1,828.29 lacs versus Rs. 2,384.05 lacs.

• Interest and other financial charges rose to Rs. 4,082.03 lacs from Rs. 3,791.59 lacs; manufacturing and other expenses increased to Rs. 38,396.25 lacs from Rs. 27,429.38 lacs.

Outlook and guidance

• Current-year operations began well; the one-year Government fertiliser policy supported expectations of full ANP capacity utilisation, with a longer-term nutrient subsidy policy sought.

• A purchased 300 mtpd DNA plant was scheduled for commissioning early in FY00 to support ANP and LDAN output; the ammonia retrofit was due for completion during FY00, raising capacity from 272 to 354 mtpd.

• LDAN air-dehumidification installation was expected by October 1999; planned DAP imports were ~150,000 MT, with further trading dependent on long-term fertiliser policy.

• Higher natural gas prices were considered likely from Q2 FY00 alongside crude oil price increases; higher repayments and lower debenture interest costs were expected to reduce financing costs.