Bharat Coking Coal returns to quarterly profit as output rises, while half-year production remains lower

Bharat Coking Coal Ltd. reported higher production and offtake in the July–September quarter, alongside a return to profit after a year-earlier loss. Its presentation filed with the National Stock Exchange on 25 October lists 7.22 million tonnes of production, up from 6.71 million tonnes in Q2 a year earlier. Offtake rose to 8.89 million tonnes from 8.11 million tonnes. The board approved reviewed results for the quarter and half-year ended 30 September. The financial statements are standalone results for Bharat Coking Coal Limited, not consolidated group accounts.

Revenue from operations for the quarter reached ₹4,412.58 crore, compared with ₹3,173.25 crore in the prior-year quarter. Profit after tax was ₹123.74 crore, against a loss of ₹52.99 crore. The presentation separately lists ₹386.95 crore of performance incentive and compensation income in the current quarter, compared with zero in the year-earlier period. That item is relevant context for the comparison; the filing does not attribute the entire profit change to it.

The quarterly improvement did not erase the weaker first-half production comparison. Coal output for the six months through September was 13.78 million tonnes, down from 15.75 million tonnes a year earlier; overburden removal fell to 64.87 million cubic metres from 81.76 million. Offtake in the half-year was 16.61 million tonnes, versus 17.05 million tonnes. The company’s presentation reports each measure separately and compares corresponding financial-year periods.

The company also highlighted capacity and logistics changes during the half-year. A newly built Bhojudih washery, with capacity of 2 million tonnes a year, began commercial operations on 26 May, bringing total washing capacity to 17.35 million tonnes, including the TSL washery. The Maheshpur rapid-loading system began operating on 20 September after a trial rake; its stated capacity is 5 million tonnes a year.

Coking-coal sales realisation for the half-year was ₹10,259.63 crore, against ₹7,817.65 crore in the same period last year, the presentation said. These results combine output, sales and financial measures, but the company’s reported quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year comparisons should not be treated as a forecast. Production was above the prior-year quarter but remained below the first-half level a year earlier.