GAIL (India) reported a sharp rise in net profit for the September quarter, helped by strong margins in its gas marketing business at a time when the West Asia crisis has upset global energy supplies.
The state-run gas company earned a net profit of ₹4,650 crore, against ₹2,217 crore in the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue from operations rose 31% from a year ago to ₹45,924 crore.
Marketing business leads the gains
The biggest push came from natural gas marketing. Operating profit from this business climbed two-and-a-half times to ₹3,284 crore, from ₹1,304 crore a year earlier.
Gas transmission also did well. Its operating profit went up 36% to ₹1,926 crore.
The LPG and other liquid hydrocarbons business nearly quadrupled its profit to ₹442 crore. In petrochemicals, the company is still making a loss, but it was much smaller at ₹22 crore, compared with ₹299 crore a year earlier.
Supply disruption from the Gulf
The Iran war and the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz have disrupted the flow of energy from the Gulf region. Petronet LNG, a key supplier of Qatari LNG to GAIL, declared force majeure on March 3. GAIL said it has not received any Qatari volumes from Petronet since then.
Plan to list city gas arm
The board met on Friday and approved the listing of GAIL Gas, a wholly owned subsidiary that distributes city gas. The listing will be done by diluting up to 25% of GAIL’s stake in the unit, according to a regulatory filing.
The board also cleared a proposal to move six licensed city gas areas to GAIL Gas through a slump sale. The transfer will take effect from January 1, 2027.
Stock reaction
Investors welcomed the numbers. GAIL shares rose 1.7% to ₹168 on the BSE. The benchmark Sensex gained 0.42%, so the stock outperformed the broader market.