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IOC Q2 profit marginally down

Our Bureau

NEW DELHI, Oct. 29

HIGH outstandings due from the oil pool account have taken a heavy toll on the Indian Oil Corporation's (IOC) financial performance during the current fiscal.

The public sector oil giant has reported a net profit of Rs 978 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2000, a marginal drop over the figure of Rs 988 crore for the corresponding period of the previous year.

The company, however, registered a 33.5 per cent jump in gross turnover, from Rs 21,159 crore in July-September 1999 to Rs 28,257 crore in July-September 2000. For the six-month period ended September 30, 2000, IOC's gross turnover stood at Rs 54,998 cro re, marking a 35.3 per cent increase over the corresponding first half figure of Rs 40,638 crore for 1999-2000.

An IOC statement said that the marginal decline in net profit for the second quarter was primarily due to higher interest charges linked to more than a 100-per cent jump in the outstandings due from the oil pool account as compared to the position at the beginning of the current financial year. Further, the company's bottomline was also adversely impacted by the higher depreciation on LPG cylinders procured to meet the record enrollment target set by the Government.