This PSU posted a surprising 69% (YoY) jump in net profit at Rs.4381 crore but a closer scrutiny of the numbers showed that this was mainly on the back of a one-time exceptional gain of Rs.1684 crore, which was interest income earned towards settlement of dues of erstwhile Delhi Electric Supply Undertaking (DESU). But for this gain, the rise in net profit was merely 4%. Thus more than operational efficiency, it was this entry which helped boost the bottomline. The topline growth was almost flat, up by 1% at Rs.18,462 crore. Operating costs were higher, led by employee costs and depreciation. Its interest outgo was pretty steep at Rs.591 crore v/s Rs.487 crore in Q4FY12. EBIDTA margins declined marginally to 23.7% from 25.3%. It ended the fiscal, FY13 with a consolidated net profit gain of 28% at Rs.12591 crore.

The company generation of electricity for the quarter was flat at 60.3 billion units and this the company has blamed on non-availability of imported coal. Its coal generation rose 4% and gas generation was down 37% due to unavailability of domestic gas. Its average plant load factor for its coal-fired units was at 87.2% v/s 91.1% (YoY). NTPC is India’s largest power generating company having an installed capacity of 41,184 MW. It added 4,170 MW of new capacity in FY13.