Nalco reports 7.59 per cent decline in net profit in fourth quarter

State-owned Nalco today reported a decline of 7.59 per cent in net profit at Rs 282.10 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2012, largely due to higher fuel costs and lower realisations on aluminium sales.

The Bhubaneswar-based aluminium major had reported a net profit of Rs 305.26 crore during the corresponding period last fiscal.

Net sales of the National Aluminium Company (Nalco) also declined marginally by about 2 per cent to Rs 1,753.41 crore during the quarter as against Rs 1,787.51 crore in the same period last fiscal, it said in a filing to the BSE.

Company's realisations on aluminium sales were down by about 11.50 per cent to Rs 1,262.71 crore during the quarter, largely due to lower prices on the London Metal Exchange. Its expenses on power and fuel rose by over 4 per cent to Rs 508.92 crore in the reported quarter.

For the full year, 2011-12, the company's net profit plunged over 20 per cent to Rs 849.50 crore as its realisations on aluminium and alumina sale were lower, while it had to face shortages of coal during the October-December quarter.

Net sales of the company were up a little over 9 per cent to Rs 6,500.27 crore in the fiscal gone by, while gross aluminum sales were up only about 3 per cent to Rs 4,968.05 crore, it said.

However, Nalco's total expenditure shot up over 21 per cent to Rs 5,933.21 crore in the last fiscal 2011-12. Of this, expenses on power and fuel alone accounted for Rs 2,196.68 crore, an increase of over 24 per cent over the previous year.

Shares of the company today closed at Rs 60.80 apiece on the BSE, up 1.50 per cent from the previous close.