NTPC Q3 profit after tax up 10% at Rs 2,861 cr

Company attributes higher profit to better coal availability, increased power generation

India’s largest power generator, state-owned NTPC Ltd today said its Profit After Tax (PAT) for the quarter ended December jumped 10.1 per cent at the back of improved availability of coal-fired stations. The company posted a PAT of Rs 2,861 crore as compared to Rs 2,596 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.

“The higher profitability in the third quarter is attributed to better coal availability that pushed availability factor beyond 95 per cent for coal-fired stations. Also, generation increased after the impact of rains in the Eastern region subsided,” said a senior NTPC executive. Provisional PAF for coal power plants was recorded at 86.2 percent between April and October 2013, implying sharp improvement in the December quarter.

The company also recorded a 18.2 per cent jump in total income to Rs 19,554 crore in the three months ended December 31 as compared to income of Rs 16,541 crore during the same period last year. “During the first nine-months of the current financial year, the unaudited total income stood at Rs 52,972 crore and the unaudited PAT at Rs 7,881 crore,” the company said in a statement.

The financial performance was hit partially due to a 66 per cent jump in employee benefit expenses to Rs 1,179 crore during the third quarter. Total expenses rose 15 per cent to Rs 15,173 crore. NTPC commissioned a 660 Mw unit at its Barh Power plant in Bihar in the third quarter. The company had added a total of 1,160 Mw new capacity at the end of December quarter.

The power generator operates 16 coal-based, seven gas-based and two solar power stations apart from seven joint venture stations with a total installed capacity of 42,454 MW. NTPC alone accounts for 28 percent of power generation in the country.