Birla Corp registers 181.28 pc growth in cash profit

Kolkata, July 17: Birla Corporation Limited, the flagship company of the M P Birla Group, has recorded 181.28 per cent growth in cash profit at Rs 501.39 crore in 2006-07 against Rs 178.25 crore the previous year.

The company's proposal for a 35 per cent dividend was approved in the AGM here today.

The total dividend payout, including taxes, will be Rs 31.53 crore against the previos year's Rs 19.76 crore.

This year's dividend payout will be the highest-ever as the Earning Per Share (EPS) went up to Rs 42.36 against Rs 16.33 the previous year.

Chairman R S Lodha said the company recorded its best performance ever in 2006-07, adding it was expanding capacity and continuing its effort to control and reduce costs across all its divisions.

He was hopeful of the turnover crossing the Rs 2,000 crore mark in 2007-08 from Rs 1,794.51 crore recorded in 2006-07.

Mr Lodha further said the company was working in right earnest, expanding production capacities at its Satna and Chanderia cement plants.

The expansions are scheduled to be commissioned in phases during 2008-09. He announced that the expansion programmes, when completed, would effectively enhance the cement capacity by 1.7 million ton, taking the total capacity to 7 million ton.

Mr Lodha said full operation of the captive power plants at the Satna and Chanderia units and the ongoing expansion projects would result in its cement division performing even better in near future.

Mr B R Nahar, Execuive Director and Chief Executive Officer, attributed the performance to the increased share of blended cement in the overall cement sale, improved realisation, higher volumes and high operational efficiency in the cement division.

The jute division of the company had initiated productivity improvement and cost control measures, he said adding it was also implementing a scheme of modernisation and removing capacity bottleneck.

UNI