Cement maker ACC Ltd on Monday released its financial numbers for the quarter ended 30 September, 2022 and reported a loss on account of higher fuel and power expenses.
The company’s consolidated net loss for the quarter stood at Rs 87.35 crore compared to a profit of Rs 450.21 crore in the same quarter last year.
Its net sales grew 7 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 3,910 crore compared to Rs 3,653 crore in the year ago quarter.
The expenses on power and fuel shot up by a massive 67 per cent to Rs 1,317 crore compared to Rs 788 crore in the same quarter last year.
The management expects a rebound for the cement sector in the post-monsoon quarter.
“The post-monsoon quarter will see the traditional rebound for the cement sector, including for ACC. We have had significant cost pressures in the recent past due to steep fuel price rise. However, recent cooling off in energy costs will impact us positively in the coming quarters,” said B. Sridhar, Whole Time Director & CEO ACC Limited.
The cement volume in the quarter under review grew by 4 per cent as compared to the same quarter last year. Ready Mix Concrete (RMX) business also recorded volume growth of approximately 10 per cent over the same quarter last year.
EBITDA for the quarter ended September 30, 2022, stood at Rs 16 Crore largely due to steep rise in fuel cost.
“During the quarter, ACC recorded strong growth in RMX volume of 10 per cent and RMX business remains a huge growth engine for future. We have aggressive growth plans and our capacity expansion initiative through our new green field projects at Ametha is progressing well and is expected to be commissioned by March 2023,” added Sridhar.