Vedanta's Q3 profit drops 18% on higher finance, raw material cost

New Delhi, Mining conglomerate Vedanta Ltd on Thursday reported an 18.3 per cent drop in consolidated net profit to Rs 2,013 crore in the third quarter ended December 2023 due to a spike in finance and raw materials cost amid muted sales. The company had posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 2,464 crore in the year-ago period, according to a regulatory filing.

Vedanta Chief Financial Officer Ajay Goel told PTI that on a sequential basis, the December quarter was one of the best quarters for the company.

"First and foremost, the EBITDA for the quarter is Rs 8,677 crore. It is 21 per higher over quarter on quarter," he explained.

He further said that in the current quarter, the company's PAT before exceptional items is Rs 8,268 crore which is 112 per cent higher than in the previous quarter.

The company's consolidated income in the third quarter of the current fiscal increased to Rs 36,320 crore from Rs 34,818 crore in the same period a year ago.

During the October-December quarter of the current fiscal, Vedanta's finance cost was Rs 2,417 crore, which is 53.7 per cent higher than Rs 1,572 crore clocked in the year-ago period.

The cost of material consumed in the third quarter increased to Rs 11,744 crore, over Rs 11,245 crore in the year-ago period.

Vedanta Executive Director Arun Misra said that the company's strategic focus on substantial cost compression, paralleled by an impressive production ramp-up across businesses has helped it to deliver remarkable performance.

As of December 31, 2023, the company's gross debt stood at Rs 75,227 crore. Vedanta, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Ltd, is a diversified global natural resources company.