Vedanta cuts debt by Rs 4,624 crore in September quarter as net profit jumps 151%

Mumbai: Vedanta, which houses the group's domestic and international zinc businesses, expects to become debt-free in the October-December quarter, chief financial officer Ajay Goel said. The company also houses the copper and ferro alloys businesses.

The Anil Agarwal-promoted company, which recently demerged several businesses, reported record revenue, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) and net profit for the September quarter.

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While consolidated revenue rose 57% year-on-year to ₹25,812 crore, Ebitda more than doubled to ₹9,938 crore and net profit was 151% higher at ₹6,202 crore. Ebitda margin, excluding the copper business, improved to 60% from 49% a year ago.

The company cut debt by ₹4,624 crore during the quarter.

"The debt right now on the balance sheet is about ₹3,675 crores," Goel told ET in an interview. "And it is a certainty that Vedanta Limited will become debt-free in Q3," he said. Vedanta has cut debt by nearly ₹10,000 crore in six months, Goel said.

Following the demerger, the group's oil and gas, iron and steel, aluminium and power businesses were demerged into separate entities, with debt allocated to each company. Of this, Vedanta Aluminium Metal had the highest debt burden at $3.5 billion, while Vedanta's debt stood at $1 billion.

Vedanta currently has a net debt-to-Ebitda ratio of 0.1 times, down from 0.3 times in the June quarter. The company spent ₹1,135 crore on capital expenditure during the quarter, while spending in the first half stood at ₹2,283 crore.

The company announced its earnings during market hours, and its shares closed 3.1% higher at ₹233 on the BSE.