Mumbai: Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) on Friday reported 3.2% rise in revenue from operations at ₹2.48 lakh crore from year-ago period, as per the Q3 results of the company. The conglomerate’s oil & gas segment quarterly revenues jumped 50% to ₹6,719 crore mainly on account of higher volumes partly offset by lower price realisation from KG D6 Field for the December quarter of the current financial year (Q3FY24).
The telecom and retail segments contributed significantly to the revenue and EBITDA of the company while O2C (oil-to-chemicals) revenue declined on lower price realisation led by a decline in average Brent crude oil prices, according to the company.
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RIL said in a media release on Friday that its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) for the quarter rose 10.9 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to ₹19,641 crore. In the same quarter last year, the company’s PAT was ₹17,706 crore (adjusted to reflect the demerger of the financial services business). EBITDA for the quarter jumped 16.7% YoY to ₹44,678 crore while the EBITDA margin rose 210 bps to 18%..
The capital expenditure for the December quarter was ₹30,102 crore ($ 3.6 billion) with investments in pan-India 5G roll-out, expansion of retail infrastructure and new energy business. This excludes the amount incurred towards spectrum and adjusted for capital advances and regrouping of assets, the company added.
Jio platforms’ growth
Revenue from operations for Jio Platforms grew 11.3% YoY to ₹27,697 crore while net profit grew by 11.6% to ₹5,445 crore, according to the company.
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EBITDA for the segment grew 11.5% to ₹13,955 crore, led by higher revenue and an increase in margins. EBITDA margin saw a mild growth of 10bps YoY to 50.4%. The company said Jio’s operating revenue growth continued to be driven by robust subscriber growth across mobility and homes, and the benefit of mix improvement in ARPU (average revenue per user).
ARPU increased 2% YoY to ₹181.7 crore with a better subscriber mix partially offset by unlimited data allowance on the 5G network. Engagement on the Jio network remained strong, and total data and voice traffic increased 31.5% and 7.9% YoY, respectively, said the company.
Grocery, fashion & lifestyle boost Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL)
As per RIL’s exchange filing, Reliance Retail delivered gross revenue of ₹83,063 crore for Q3FY24, rising 22.8% YoY led by grocery, fashion and lifestyle, and consumer electronics businesses. EBITDA for the segment stood at ₹6,258 crore, up 31.1% YoY. EBITDA margin from operations on net sales rose 40 bps YoY to 8.1%.
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“The business expanded its store network with 252 new store openings taking the total store count at the end of the quarter to 18,774 stores with an area of 72.9 million sq ft. The quarter recorded footfalls of over 282 million across formats, a growth of 40.3 per cent YoY,” RIL said.
Digital commerce and new commerce businesses continued to grow and contributed to 19% of revenue.
O2C revenue dips
RIL said its O2C segment revenue for Q3FY24 reduced by 2.4% YoY to ₹1,41,096 crore ($17.0 billion) primarily on account of lower price realisation led by a 5.3% YoY decline in average Brent crude oil prices.
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The company said O2C segment EBITDA increased marginally by 1% YoY to ₹14,064 crore ($ 1.7 billion) led by higher gasoline cracks and advantageous feedstock sourcing; this was partially offset by lower downstream chemical margins and planned maintenance and inspection shutdown. “Planned maintenance and inspection shutdown of CDU, FCCU, delayed coking and ROGC complex impacted yields and profitability. O2C EBITDA would have been higher on YoY and comparable on QoQ basis if all major units were available during the quarter,” RIL said.
Oil & Gas revenue sees robust growth
RIL said its exploration and production (E&P) revenue for the quarter under review jumped 50.2% YoY mainly on account of higher volumes partly offset by lower price realisation from KG D6 Field. EBITDA for the segment jumped 49.6% YoY to ₹5,804 crore while the EBITDA margin stood at 86.4% (down 30bps YoY) for the quarter.
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Mixed show by media business
Revenue from operations for the segment came down 4.1% YoY to ₹1,774 crore due to lower Movie Studio revenue. Consolidated EBITDA fell during the quarter due to Viacom18’s investments in growth verticals – Sports and Digital.
“Both these segments will be the leading drivers of revenue for the foreseeable future but require investments in the near term to build a strong consumer proposition. TV News business delivered a strong improvement in profitability driven by revenue growth,” RIL said.
RIL said TV News business revenue was up 23% YoY, driven by the strong growth in advertising revenue across clusters. Digital News business delivered 20% revenue growth, driven by IP events and video monetisation across digital platforms.
