 "Suzlon slumps into Rs 807 crore loss in Q2")
Debt-laden Suzlon Energy today posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 807.74 crore for the quarter ended September, as adverse market conditions and capital allocation issues pushed the wind turbine maker into the red.
The company, which has approached lenders for restructuring the debt, had a consolidated net profit of Rs 48 crore in the second quarter of last fiscal. The figures are after taxes, minority interest and share of profit/loss of associates.
However, Suzlon’s consolidated total income rose to Rs 5,784.39 crore in the September quarter, from Rs 5,154.45 crore in the year-ago period. Suzlon Group Chief Financial Officer Kirti Vagadia said that capital allocation issues and adverse market conditions, among others, impacted the second-quarter results.
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Standalone total income fell to Rs 735.34 crore in the latest September quarter from Rs 2,029.41 crore in the same period a year ago. Reuters[/caption]
Regarding the Corporate Debt Restructuring (CDR) proposal, he said a meeting with lenders was held yesterday. “None of the lenders opposed (our CDR) proposal,” Vagadia told PTI. However, specific details were not disclosed.
Suzlon Chairman Tulsi Tanti said the group’s performance was"disappointing" in the first six months of current fiscal.
“Our performance was affected by macro-economic headwinds and policy uncertainties in some key markets; as well as by our internal challenges around liability management, and sub-optimal capital allocation to business operations,” he noted.
The wind turbine maker has an order book of about Rs 37,290 crore (nearly $7 billion). “We have also started the process to comprehensively address our liabilities, inter alia, through the CDR mechanism and balance our long-term capital structure,” he said.
On a standalone basis, Suzlon reported a net loss of Rs 546.33 crore for the quarter ended September. In the year-ago period, the net loss was Rs 19.39 crore. Standalone total income fell to Rs 735.34 crore in the latest September quarter from Rs 2,029.41 crore in the same period a year ago.
On October 29, Suzlon said it has initiated discussions with lenders for restructuring debt, including a two-year moratorium on repayment of term loans. Suzlon has a debt burden of over Rs 13,000 crore including Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs) obligations. A few weeks back, bondholders had rejected its proposal seeking four-month extension to repay overseas debt worth about $221 million.
The wind turbine major has sought a a two-year moratorium on principal and interest payments on term-debt.
PTI