Praj Industries CEO says the company’s order book is healthy as Q4 net jumps 53%
'Last week, we flew a plane from Pune to Delhi based on a sustainable aviation fuel that we made from domestic feedstock, and that augurs a completely new pathway for the whole era of bio mobility,' Shishir Joshipura, MD and CEO, Praj Industries, told CNBC-TV18. Shares of Praj Industries closed at Rs 375, up 5.18 percent from the previous close on the BSE.
Biotechnology company Praj Industries released its Q4 earnings on Friday, May 25. Its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) for the fourth quarter of FY23 stood at Rs 88.12 crore, up 53 percent from Rs 57.65 crore in the corresponding period a year ago.
Shishir Joshipura, MD and CEO, Praj Industries, told CNBC-TV18 that there is a large canvas of opportunities opening up.
“We have seen the phenomenon of energy transition and the way it is unfolding. Last week, we flew a plane from Pune to Delhi based on a sustainable aviation fuel that we made from domestic feedstock, and that augurs a completely new pathway for the whole era of bio mobility, as we call it, where biofuels will play an increasingly important role in defining mobility for the mankind,” he said.
Praj Industries’ order intake during the quarter stood at Rs 1,038 crore. Joshipura said the company’s order book is healthy as it enters the new financial year.
“We have a healthy inquiry pipeline; we are executing contracts every day and a lot of capacity will start coming on the ground. So, we do foresee a healthy pipeline as we move forward through the year,” he added.
Lot more will happen in the ethanol space
Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal recently said he is confident the country will achieve the target of 20 percent blending of ethanol with petrol by 2025 and asserted that the maize crop will play an important role in the implementation of this programme. In this context, Joshipura added that EBP 20 is the major wind in the sail but there is a lot more that will happen in the ethanol space.
“As we move forward we will see a lot more happening in the ethanol space in terms of application development, whether it comes to stationary engines, which currently run on diesel, or to aircraft taking off through sustainable aviation fuel that I mentioned. We are going to see a lot more use and application of ethanol as we move forward and that is what is going to drive the whole consumption scenario as we move,” he said.
Income from operations for the quarter under review stood at Rs 1,003.98 crore, up 21 percent YoY against Rs 830.96 crore.
The company's operating EBITDA saw a 38.8 percent YoY jump to Rs 108.3 crore while EBITDA margins improved 140 bps to 10.79 percent in the fourth quarter against the year-ago period.
The board of directors of Praj Industries proposed a final dividend of Rs 4.50 per equity share at 225 percent of the face value of Rs 2 per equity share, for the financial year 2023.
Shares of Praj Industries closed at Rs 375, up 5.18 percent from the previous close on the BSE.
(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)
First Published: May 26, 2023 6:53 PM IST
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