Orient Cement aims to reduce debt by Rs 400 crore; says margins to remain healthy

Orient Cement aims to further reduce the debt by around another Rs 400 crore, Deepak Khetrapal, MD & CEO, told CNBC-TV18.

The CK Birla group firm on Monday reported an over two-fold jump in net profit at Rs 99.87 crore in the fourth quarter ended March 2021. It had posted a net profit of Rs 44.06 crore in the January-March quarter a year ago.

“The year-end debt number was Rs 770 crore and we had Rs 150 crore of cash. So the net debt in that perspective is well under Rs 650 crore when we closed the year,” Khetrapal said.

“As we speak, we have paid all the money which has been due to the banks in FY23 that we have made in April. So Rs 60 crore odd has been repaid to the bank after the closure of the year and we are still sitting with cash with us. Therefore, for the year-end, our intention would be to reduce the debt by another Rs 400 plus crore, so that by the end of the year we look like a debt-free company and that gives us a platform to start our expansion plan,” he said.

On business, he expects margins to continue to remain healthy and cement capacity to move to 11.5 million tonnes by FY24.

For the entire management interview, watch the video