Adani-backed Ambuja Cements Q2 profit surges 751% to Rs 792.96 crore, revenue rises 4.1% on-year

financialexpress.com:

The Adani Group-owned cement manufacturing company Ambuja Cements on Wednesday posted profit for the second quarter of FY24 at Rs 792.96 crore, up 751.0 per cent as against Rs 93.18 crore during the same period last year, surpassing estimates. It posted revenue from operations at Rs 7,423.95 crore, up 4.1 per cent in comparison to Rs 7,131.39 crore during second quarter of FY23. According to a CNBC TV18 poll, Ambuja Cements was expected to post Q2 profit at Rs 515 crore and revenue at Rs 4,099 crore for the quarter ended September 2023. The company EBITDA, meanwhile, was up 106 per cent from Rs 1,438 crore to Rs 2,969 crore. 

Ambuja Cements recorded sales volume growth of 5.9 per cent at 28.5 MioT. Cash & cash equivalent stood at Rs 11,721 crore as of September 2023, up by Rs 191 crore. Ambuja Cements said, “Operational excellence journey continues to deliver improved productivity and performance which has helped to reduce operating cost and improve bottom-line.” 

Ambuja Cements’ clinker and cement sales volume growth was at 13.1 Mn T, up 2.3 per cent on-year. Operational efficiencies helped in reduction in kiln fuel cost, it said, by 34 per cent, (Rs 2.72/’000 kCal to Rs 1.79/’000 kCal) expected to further come down through mix and source optimisation. Also, WHRS power mix has gone up by 11.2 pp to 15 per cent, the company said. 

Ajay Kapur, Whole Time Director & CEO, Ambuja Cements, said, “Continuing our transformation journey, we are pleased to report a strong performance (standalone) in the second quarter of FY‘24, with a 8 per cent increase in revenue, 147 per cent increase in EBITDA at Rs 773 crore and 364 per cent increase in PAT at Rs 644 crore compared to the previous year same quarter. Along with strong demand