Ambuja Cements on Monday reported a 42.50 per cent drop in its net profit for the second quarter of the ongoing financial year (Q2 FY25). During the quarter under review, consolidated profit came at Rs 455.96 crore compared to Rs 792.96 crore in the year-ago period. The fall in net profit included an expectational item worth Rs 156.20 crore for settling arbitral proceedings between ACC Mineral Resources Ltd and JMS Mining Pvt Ltd.
Revenue from operations of the cement firm inched up 1.24 per cent to Rs 7,516.11 crore in Q2 FY25 as against Rs 7,423.95 crore in the corresponding period last year.
Ajay Kapur, Whole Time Director & CEO at Ambuja Cements, said, "With our strong foothold across the nation, we are further expanding our footprint in new geographies in-line with our vision. Post successful completion of the orient cement transaction, we are well poised to achieve 100+ MTPA capacity by this fiscal year end."
In Q2 FY25, the company said capex and opex-based initiatives across all operational areas viz. volumes, efficiencies and cost coupled with Group synergies have shown healthy improvements reinforcing Ambuja's cost leadership.
"Increased use of low cost Imported Petcoke and E-auction coal along with overall reduction in cost of fuel basket have contributed to 13 per cent reduction in Kiln fuel cost (Consolidated) from Rs 1.82 to Rs 1.59 per '000 Kcal. Thermal energy consumption improved by 3 kCal/Kg of Clinker at 758 kCal," it added.
Shares of Ambuja Cements jumped 4.61 per cent to hit day high of Rs 578.90 after the Q2 FY25 results.
The country's second-largest cement maker recently said it would buy a nearly 47 per cent stake in rival Orient Cement for Rs 3,791 crore. Ambuja, part of billionaire Gautam Adani's ports-to-power conglomerate, said it would buy the entire 37.9 per cent stake held by Orient's large shareholders, including Chairman CK Birla, and the rest from public shareholders in a deal that values the company at Rs 8,100 crore. This would trigger an open offer for an additional 26 per cent stake in Orient.