No significant impact to bottomline from recent cuts in fuel, LPG price: Chairman

IOCL reported consolidated net profit of Rs 9,224.85 crore in Q3

State-run Indian Oil Corporation Limited’s (IOCL) bottom line would not be impacted to a large extent by the recent price cuts announced by the company, said Chairman SM Vaidya on March 15.

IOC, among other oil marketing companies (OMCs), reduced petrol and diesel prices by Rs 2 per litre across the country starting March 15. OMCs had also cut prices of 14.2-kg LPG cylinders by Rs 100, as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 8.

Responding to whether Indian Oil plans to reduce fuel prices further, Vaidya said, “It is a dynamic world. Crude oil prices play a critical role. Once crude oil prices show some trend, whether it is going to be stable or volatile, then we will take a call.”

IOC share price tanked over 5 percent on BSE on March 15 after the fuel price cut, while HPCL and BPCL were down by 6.24 percent and 3.74 percent, respectively.

The remarks by the head of India’s largest refiner come after the company swung back to profits in FY24 after reporting huge losses in the earlier year.

In Q3, IOC reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 9,224.85 crore, a multi-fold increase from Rs 890.28 crore reported last year. Healthier marketing margins from last year helped the company book profits in the quarter.

However, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said that OMCs are still making under-recovery on the sale of diesel, without specifying the amount. The Indian Oil Chairman also did not specify the current under-recovery of diesel made by the company.