Petronet LNG, which imports liquefied natural gas (LNG) for distribution to fertiliser and power plants, reported a 10.51 per cent decline in net profit during the quarter ended September 2008 as the company partly shut its operations for repair and maintenance in the period.
The partial shutdown of one pump at its LNG regassification plant at Dahej in Gujarat resulted in its profit falling to Rs 103.36 crore during the three months ended September 2008 compared with Rs 115.51 crore in July-September 2007.
Net sales also fell marginally to Rs 1,654.92 crore in Q2 compared with Rs 1,670.50 crore in the year-ago quarter. Expenditure, however, increased 1.13 per cent to Rs 1,472.63 crore from Rs 1,456.16 crore.
“The pump has been recommissioned and the terminal is operating at full capacity (now),” the company said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Petronet LNG imports liquefied gas from Qatar under two contracts – a long term contract and a more expensive short-term contract meant specifically for the Dabhol power plant.
The price of the long-term contract is scheduled to be revised from January next year, but there is no formal decision on how much the new price is likely to be.