Tata Motors today reported a Rs 329-crore consolidated loss for the quarter ended June 30, against a Rs 720- crore profit in the corresponding period a year earlier. The prime cause was the loss from Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) of Britain, its acquisition of last year.
In July, Tata Motors reported a standalone net profit of Rs 514 crore. JLR was acquired on June 2 last year, so the consolidated profit of a year ago did not include its performance.
“Markets still continue to be challenging,” said Ravi Kant, vice-chairman of the company, talking about the demand for luxury cars. JLR took a £150-million loan in the quarter for its working capital requirements. Another £340-million loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) will be commissioned soon, said Kant. The company needs the money for its working capital requirements. It has finalised four banks for the loan and is likely to make the announcement soon.
Net sales for the quarter increased by 13 per cent to Rs 16,290 crore, said the company. It has repaid $150 million out of the $1-billion bridge loan rolled over in May this year; that loan was taken to buy JLR.
The company has pledged its holding of over 10.4 million shares in group company Tata Steel, representing a 1.31 per cent stake, as security for the loan rollover. The shares were valued at Rs 440 crore at Monday’s price.
The company had a total debt of Rs 33,850 crore at the end of the quarter. Of that, Rs 22,000 crore was for the automotive business. The rest included debt for the vehicle finance business. “We are working on bringing down the debt level,” said C Ramakrishnan, chief financial officer of the company, without giving specifics.
