HPCL back in black

Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd. (HPCL) has posted a net profit of Rs649.12 crore (US$135.2 million) for the quarter ended June 30, 2009, as against a net loss of Rs888.12 crore (US$185.0 million) in the same quarter a year ago. Sales for the quarter dropped 29% to Rs24,637.91 crore (US$5.1 billion) from Rs34,866.49 crore (US$7.3 billion), largely due to the decline in global crude oil prices. Sales of petroleum products have increased to 6.84 million ton, registering a growth of above 11% over the first quarter a year ago. The growth in domestic sales stood at 7.6% as against the industry average of 6.2%, being the highest growth among oil marketing companies. The net under recovery on the sale of essential petroleum products during the first quarter came down to Rs990 crore (US$206.3 million) from Rs2,758 crore (US$574.7 million). During the quarter, foreign exchange gain was Rs161 crore (US$33.5 million) against a loss of Rs224 crore (US$46.6 million) in the previous year. (July 30, 2009)