RIL reports Q2 net profit of Rs5,490 cr

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has reported a net profit of Rs5,490 crore ($0.9 billion) for the second quarter of the current financial year ended 30 September 2013, a 1.5-per cent year-on-year increase from the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year.

Revenue (turnover) for the quarter increased by 14.2 per cent to Rs106,523 crore ($ 17.0 billion)  while exports increased by 34.9 per cent to Rs77,429 crore ($ 12.4 billion).

Profit before depreciation, interest and taxes (PBDIT) increased to Rs9,909 crore ($1.6 billion)  and profit before tax (PBT) increased to Rs6,871 crore ($ 1.1 billion) while cash profit decreased by 1.5 per cent to Rs7,668 crore ($1.2 billion), RIL said in a release.

RIL said its gross refining margin for the quarter ended 30 September 2013 stood lower at $7.7 per barrel.

For the half year ended 30 September 2013, RIL said its net profit increased by 9.4 per cent to Rs10,842 crore ($1.7 billion).

Gross refining margin for the half year ended 30 September 2013 stood at $ 8.0 per barrel.

Revenue (turnover) for H1 2013-14 increased by 4.7 per cent to Rs197,112 crore ($ 31.5 billion) while exports increased by 19.3 per cent to Rs134,455 crore ($ 21.5 billion).

Profit before depreciation, interest and taxes (PBDIT) increased by 4.9 per cent to Rs19,519 crore ($ 3.1 billion) and profit before tax increased by 9.9 per cent to Rs13,533 crore ($ 2.2 billion) while cash profit increased by 3.1 per cent to Rs15,077 crore ($ 2.4 billion).

RIL and BP announced a new gas condensate discovery off the east coast of India in the Cauvery basin. The discovery, in the deepwater block CY-DWN-2001/2 (CYD5), is situated 62 km from the coast in the Cauvery Basin and is the second gas discovery in the block.

RIL is the operator with 70-per cent equity with BP owning the remaining 30 per cent share. Well CYIII-D5-S1 was drilled in a water depth of 1,743 meters, to a total depth of 5,731 meters, with the primary objective of exploring Mesozoic-aged reservoirs.

In July 2013, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) inked a memorandum of understanding with Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) to explore the possibility of sharing RIL's infrastructural facility in the East Coast.

In line with the global practice, the MoU aims at working out the modalities for sharing of infrastructure, identifying additional requirements as well as firming up the commercial terms.

During Q2 FY14, RIL said its Jamnagar refineries processed 17.7 million tonnes (highest ever quarterly throughput) of crude and achieved utilization rate of 114 per cent. In comparison average utilization rates for refineries globally during the same period were 86.7 per cent in North America, 78.7 per cent in Europe and 85.2 per cent in Asia.

Reliance Jio Infocomm
Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, the telecom arm of RIL, meanwhile, signed an indefeasible right to use (IRU) agreement with Bharti Airtel Limited in April 2013, under which Bharti will provide Reliance Jio data capacity on its i2i submarine cable.

Reliance Jio will utilise a dedicated fibre pair on i2i. The high speed link will enable Reliance Jio to extend its network and service reach to customers across Asia Pacific region.

Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited and Reliance Communications Limited also signed of a definitive agreement for sharing RCOM's nationwide telecom towers infrastructure.

Under the terms of the agreement, Reliance Jio Infocomm will utilise up to 45,000 ground and rooftop towers across RCOM's nationwide network for accelerated roll-out of its state-of-the-art 4G services.

The agreement provides for joint working arrangements to configure the scope of additional towers to be built at new locations to ensure deep penetration and seamless delivery of next generation services, RIL said.

KG-D6 field produced 1.0 million barrels of crude oil, 0.13 million barrels of condensate and 94.6BCF of natural gas in 1H FY14, a reduction of 41 per cent, 50 per cent and 52 per cent, respectively, on a Y-o-Y basis. RIL attributed the fall in production to geological complexity and natural decline in the fields.

Reliance's shale gas business in the United States comprises three upstream joint ventures, one each with Chevron, Carrizo Oil & Gas and Pioneer Natural Resources  with whom it also has a midstream joint venture.

Aggregate investments since inception of these joint ventures stood at around$ 6.5 billion, as at the end of 2Q FY14. Reliance said its shale gas business continued to grow and development momentum remained strong in each of the joint ventures.

Reliance Retail
Reliance said its retail business continued to grow despite falling consumer confidence in the past quarter.

However, even during this, the retail business registered a turnover of Rs6,930 crore for the first six months of the financial year, a growth of 41 per cent over the corresponding period last year. Turnover in 2Q FY14 stood at Rs3,456 crore, a 31 per cent growth over the same quarter of last year.

During this quarter, the business crossed a significant milestone of operating 10 million sq. ft. of retail space with the addition of 58 stores across all formats. The business now operates over 1,550 stores across 136 cities in India.