NEW DELHI: A freeze on petrol and diesel prices amid declining crude during the July-September period helped IndianOil, the country’s largest oil refiner and fuel retailer, bounce back into black with a handsome profit of Rs 12,967 crore in the third quarter against a loss of Rs 272 crore in the previous corresponding period.
The board on Tuesday approved an interim dividend of Rs 5 per share, or 50%, for the current fiscal.
The sharp turnaround was aided by a 14% drop in crude prices from the year-ago period helped the state-run giant cover past losses and make more than half of its highest annual profit of Rs 24,184 crore in 2021-22 in just six months of the current fiscal.
IndianOil did not disclose the refining margin in the September quarter but said it earned more than $13 on each barrel of crude it processed per barrel in the six months to September against $25.4 per barrel in the first half of 2022-23.
The company indirectly admitted to benefitting from the fuel price freeze when it said the profit was aided by higher marketing margins and lower exchange losses. IndianOil as well as its public sector siblings Bharat Petroleum and HIndustan Petroleum had suffered extensive losses during the April-September period of 2022-23 as they did not raise pump prices on informal government nudge to protect consumers as oil prices shot through the roof.
Pre-tax earnings from sale of petroleum products soared to Rs 17,755.9 crore in the September quarter of the current fiscal compared to Rs 104 crore in the same period last year. But revenue fell to Rs 2 lakh crore from Rs 2.2 lakh crore a year ago due to lower oil prices.
The board on Tuesday approved an interim dividend of Rs 5 per share, or 50%, for the current fiscal.
The sharp turnaround was aided by a 14% drop in crude prices from the year-ago period helped the state-run giant cover past losses and make more than half of its highest annual profit of Rs 24,184 crore in 2021-22 in just six months of the current fiscal.
IndianOil did not disclose the refining margin in the September quarter but said it earned more than $13 on each barrel of crude it processed per barrel in the six months to September against $25.4 per barrel in the first half of 2022-23.
The company indirectly admitted to benefitting from the fuel price freeze when it said the profit was aided by higher marketing margins and lower exchange losses. IndianOil as well as its public sector siblings Bharat Petroleum and HIndustan Petroleum had suffered extensive losses during the April-September period of 2022-23 as they did not raise pump prices on informal government nudge to protect consumers as oil prices shot through the roof.
Pre-tax earnings from sale of petroleum products soared to Rs 17,755.9 crore in the September quarter of the current fiscal compared to Rs 104 crore in the same period last year. But revenue fell to Rs 2 lakh crore from Rs 2.2 lakh crore a year ago due to lower oil prices.