State-owned Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation Ltd (GMDC) has registered 42 per cent rise in its net profits at Rs 101 crores for the third quarter ended December 2010. Company's quarterly turnover stood at Rs 360 crores up 33 per cent against the corresponding period last year and 45 per cent against the immediate preceding quarter.
By ensuring strategic mining operations across the Board, GMDC could achieve the highest ever quarterly turnover and net profit, the company said in an official statement.
Announcing the results today, V S Gadhavi, MD, GMDC said that the quarterly results for the third quarter had once again proven the capacity and capability of the company to soar new skies in the coming periods. On the production front, the lignite production for the quarter stood at 24.80 lakh metric tonnes (MT), which was 16 per cent higher over the previous comparative quarter. In order to further boost the lignite sales, GMDC is proposing to set up a pyrite removal plant of 1.5 million tonnes per annum capacity at its Bhavnagar mines. This would enhance the lignite quality and in turn would benefit the end users, the statement said.
Similarly, GMDC is also proposing to set up a lime-crushing plant of 2 lakh MT per annum capacity at its Panandhro Lignite mines, which would enhance the quality of limestone for cement industry and power plant.
The company witnessed a 200 per cent rise in the bauxite sales over the sales registered in previous quarter. The company believes that in the coming years, bauxite would be another area that would enable it to enrich. This is expected to achieve through value addition in bauxite.
The company's power segment sustained its performance by generating 317 million units (MUs) in the third quarter as against 231 MUs previous quarter. The power segment booked a net profit of Rs 33 crores.
The 2 x 125 MW lignite fed power plant situated at Akrimota in Kutch District, achieved a PLF of 59 per cent for quarter under review as against 43 per cent of the previous quarter. Further, GMDC has set up a wind-farm with a capacity of 19.5 MW at Maliya, Rajkot district.
The company has lined up to add on further 80 MW of Wind Power capacity in phases within next six months.In order to diversify the project portfolio and to leverage the financial position, GMDC has recently branched out in the area of solar power and it is proposed to set up a 5 MW solar power project. Gadhavi informed that a PPA has been signed with the state power utility.