BHUBANESWAR: Navratna CPSU Nalco’s performance has been sound, even as about 70 per cent aluminium smelters across the world reported loss.

“Nalco has remained profitable all through by successfully handling the market downturn, by maximising bauxite mining and alumina refining, adding new pots and augmenting production, besides effecting several cost reduction measures, particularly in raw material and energy consumption,” Nalco CMD T K ChandChand said while addressing a gathering on the occasion of Independence Day here.

Informing that the Odisha-based aluminium major has been declared by London-based Wood Mackenzie as the lowest cost producer of Alumina, Chand noted that the performance of Nalco during the 2015-16 fiscal has been quite encouraging with a gross turnover of Rs 7,157 crore and net profit of Rs 731 crore.

“During 2015-16, Nalco has increased pidend payment to shareholders from 35 per cent to 40 per cent. Its share price in the market has gone up from Rs 36.55 in July 2015 to Rs 47.50,” Chanda said, adding the market capitalisation has also improved from around Rs 9,000 crore to Rs 12,200 crore.

He said till July, in the ongoing fiscal, Nalco has produced 23,18,371 metric tonnes of Bauxite (growth of 32.45 per cent over corresponding period of last year), while the company produced 6,49,200 metric tonnes of Alumina hydrate (growth of 12.88 per cent over corresponding period last year).

“There is a saying, ‘Fortune favours the Brave’. This is apt in case of Nalco facing the market blizzard bravely and coming out successful. This could not have been possible without a concerted effort of all employees,” he said.

The Nalco CMD said within one year, the company has added captive resources worth Rs 80,000 crore, including the Utkal D and E Coal blocks with 200 million tonnes of coal at Angul and Pottangi Bauxite Mines having a deposit of about 75.22 million tonnes.

“If we tap these resources in time, for the next five decades, we shall have no resource crunch for our core functions,” Chand said, adding for 2016-17, Nalco has signed an MoU with the Ministry of Mines for higher targets.

As per the MoU, the target for revenue from operations, excluding excise duty, has been fixed at Rs 7,100 crore. The MoU has also set higher targets for production of both alumina and aluminium as compared to the previous fiscal.

Nalco has set an annual production target of 21.30 lakh tonnes of alumina and 3.85 lakh tonnes of aluminium.

The company had produced 19.53 lakh tonnes of alumina and 3.72 lakh tonnes of aluminium in 2015-16.

It has also set a Capex target of Rs 1,021 crore, which includes projects like development of Utkal D and E Coal blocks, Wind and Solar Power Plants of 170 MW, preliminary work for one million tonne capacity refinery at Damanjodi, Angul Aluminium Park, Caustic Soda Plant and other modernisation activities worth more than Rs 300 crore.

“A new business model has been introduced to enable us strengthen the company’s business by leveraging its core competency in mining, metals and energy sectors, through modernisation, Greenfield and Brownfield expansions, upstream and downstream integration,” Chand said.

Besides, the model also envisages persification into green power, independent power plants, caustic soda, rare metal like titanium, revenue from waste like recovery of iron from red mud waste and also developing new revenue segment that are immune to downturn in metal market, he added.