Reliance net rises 61.9%

The board has recommended a dividend of Rs 7.5 per share for 2004-05, the company said in a statement. The turnover rose 29.55 per cent to Rs 19,840 crore in the fourth quarter.

The company said its telecom subsidiary Reliance Infocomm has made a net profit of Rs 51 crore for the year 2004-05 as against a loss of Rs 390 crore in the previous year. During the year, Reliance Infocomm notched up a turnover of Rs 5,387 crore reflecting a 99 per cent jump from level of 2003-04.

Reliance said exports, including deemed exports, were Rs 25,532 crores as against Rs 14,969 crores during the previous year, an increase of 71 per cent.

The company’s production of oil & gas and petrochemicals, including toll conversion, increased to 12.7 million tonnes during the year against 12.4 million tonnes for the previous year, representing a growth of 3 per cent. The company’s refinery operated at 96 per cent capacity utilisation and processed 31.5 million tonnes of crude during the year.

During the year under review, product prices remained firm while raw materials prices remained volatile in line with volatility in international crude oil prices.

The statement said its oil and gas strategy is aimed at further enhancing the level of vertical integration in its energy business, and capturing value across the entire energy chain, while fulfilling important national priorities.

In the FY 2004-05, the domestic demand for petroleum products increased by 4.8% as compared to 3.5% in the previous year, the statement said.

The consumption of HSD, which accounts for more than a third of the total consumption of petroleum products, registered a strong growth of 7.4 per cent against a demand growth of 1.2 per cent during the previous year. LPG demand rose by 9.4 per cent while demand for motor spirit grew 4.9 per cent . The demand for aviation turbine fuel grew by 14.5% during the year.

The refinery margins were robust in all the regions as end product price increases were much higher than the concomitant rise in crude oil prices. In the period under review, Reliance had a 96 per cent capacity utilisation at its Jamnagar Refinery.