RIL profit declines 5.45% in June quarter on weak oil-to-chemicals business, higher depreciation

The company’s oil-to-chemicals (O2C) EBITDA was lower by 14.3 per cent on account of lower gasoline cracks (-30 per cent) and lower downstream chemical deltas, particularly PE (-17 per cent), PP (-16 per cent) and integrated polyester margin (-15 per cent). Depreciation increased by 15.5 per cent to Rs 13,596 crore ($ 1.6 billion) on expanded asset base across all the businesses, higher network utilization in digital services business, higher retail store count and ramp-up in upstream production.

RIL’s digital arm Reliance Jio Platform made a 11.7 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 5,698 crore during June 2024 as against Rs 5,101 crore a year ago and a 12.8 per cent increase in revenue of Rs 34,548 crore (Rs 30,640 crore).

Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd reported a 4.6 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 2,549 crore in the latest quarter as against Rs 2,436 crore last year. Gross revenue increased by 8.1 per cent to Rs 75,615 crore from Rs 69,948 crore.

Reliance Jio Infocomm has posted a net profit of Rs 5,445 crore for the June quarter as against Rs 4,863 crore a year ago, showing a rise of 11.96 per cent. Revenue rose by 10.13 per cent to Rs 26,478 crore for Q1 from Rs 24,042 in the same period a year ago.

RIL Chairman and MD Mukesh D. Ambani said: “Consolidated EBITDA for the quarter improved from a year ago with strong contribution from consumer and upstream businesses offsetting weak O2C operating environment. Reliance’s resilient operating and financial performance in this quarter underscores the strength of its diverse portfolio of businesses.”

RIL shares fell by 1.92 per cent to Rs 3,109.50 on the BSE on Friday.

“Importantly, these businesses are contributing significantly to India’s growth, providing vital energy and vibrant channels for digital and physical distribution of goods and services. The digital services business registered an impressive financial performance year-on-year, continuing its positive growth momentum,” Ambani said.

Jio’s True 5G network, covering 85 per cent of India’s 5G capacity, continues to attract users, while the fixed broadband offerings are witnessing increasing consumer traction both in homes and enterprises. The attractive value proposition offered by Jio is enabling more Indians to transition to next-gen data networks, he said.

“With fast-paced expansion of its retail footprint, Reliance Retail continues to cement its position as the preferred retailer for millions of Indians. The digital and new commerce segments are also scaling up rapidly. Reliance Retail is focused not only on providing quality products to customers, but also on enhancing overall customer experience, both during and after sales,” Ambani said.

“The deep integration and flexibility built into our O2C business model helped mitigate the impact of challenging operating environment. The business was impacted by lower fuel cracks with tepid global demand and ramp-up of new refineries. The oil and gas segment continued its growth trajectory with higher production, offsetting lower year-on-year gas price realizations,” he said. Reliance has made significant progress on the implementation of New Energy Giga-factories. On completion, these projects will provide India a world-class, integrated green energy ecosystem which can propel the next leg of sustainable growth, he said.