NTPC profit falls 8% to Rs 3,212 crore

State-owned NTPC reported an 8.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) decrease in its standalone net profit to Rs 3,211.9 crore in the three months ended September, mainly on higher expenses.

NTPC revenue increased 12.5% to Rs 29,273 crore in Q2 as the power company sold 69.3 billion units of electricity in the period, 10.2% higher than the corresponding period last fiscal. However, expenses grew by a sharper 17.2% to Rs 25,542.5 crore, mainly on the back of fuel costs rising 27.7% to Rs 16,644.4 crore.

Overall coal consumption in the quarter increased by 14.2% to 43.8 million tonne (MT). It imported 0.4 MT coal in the quarter under review against 0.2 MT imports in the corresponding quarter last year. Price of imported coal has increased by more than 150% over the last 12 months.

NTPC’s captive mines produced 2.8 MT of the fuel, significantly higher than the 0.8 MT production recorded in Q2FY22. The company recently invited tenders to import 1 MT of coal for self-consumption, soon after the Centre asked power plants to step up imports of the fuel.

NTPC coal stations achieved utilisation levels (PLF) of 69.6% in the second quarter of the fiscal, against 64.3% in the same period last year. The company paid Rs 960.5 crore in taxes during the quarter, 88.7% higher than the same period last year.

NTPC coal stations’ average plant availability factor — which determines the fixed cost recovery levels — slipped 647 basis points y-o-y to 85.4%. Fixed cost represents pre-determined expenditure components, including debt service obligation and risk-free returns.

Power plants are contractually entitled to receive fixed costs even when buyers do not procure electricity from the units. However, they need to display a minimum PAF of 85% to claim the fixed costs.

Currently, the total installed capacity of the power behemoth stands at 66,900 megawatt (MW). NTPC also plans to have 60,000 MW of green power generation base by 2032 from the current 1,400 MW.

NTPC Renewable Energy, the renewable energy arm of state-run power producer NTPC, has invited expression of interest from domestic module manufacturers to procure 15,000 MW of solar panels for its projects over the next five years.