ET Now: You have closed Q4 with a strong top line growth of about 27% but the EBITDA growth trails at 10%, is this largely because there was pressure on soda ash realisations and the fact that global capacity is getting added up? RS Jalan: If you look the GHCL as a whole for the entire year, just first let me give you overall numbers of the full year, you will find that we have grown. The overall year has been very good for us, the revenue has grown by around 10% whereas my EBITDA has grown by 14% and margin also if you look at overall for the full year you will see that our margin percentage has grown by 1% from 23.4% to 24.3%. PAT, we have grown by around 51%. And if you look at the last three years you will find that our PAT has grown by around 49% CAGR so that is a good very number we have been able to produce for the stake holders. Two more things I just want to add here is; one we have completed our expansion of soda ash by one lakh ton within timeframe and within the cost. And also I am happy to inform that our company has been certified as a great place to works which is one of the unique positions for the company which shows the commitment of the company towards its people and its stakeholders. Now coming back to the quarter four, you will see that our quarter four revenue has grown significantly by 28% whereas of course the margins has dropped primarily because the prices remained the same but as I have been mentioning before also the raw material prices like coal and other raw material like coke has gone up and that has definitely put a pressure on the margin. Overall, but still in spite of the pricing pressure on the raw material cost you will find that we have been able to maintain overall profitability of the company at the EBITDA level as well. ET Now: What is the overall outlook because you know what is the volume growth that you have clocked in soda ash business as well as textiles through FY17 and what can you guide for for both those in FY18 in terms of the demand environment improving? RS Jalan: If you look at the chemical business you will find that our volume growth the whole year was around 7%, we moved from 7,50,000 tons to around 8,00,000 tons which primarily we have not added any capacity and the capacity was added only at the end of the year. In spite of that, because of better efficiency we have been able to increase our volume. And that ultimately has led us the margin overall the profitability of the chemical business has gone up. Even on the textile side you will find our revenue growth has been there in the whole year by around 16%. Overall revenue growth in the textile was also there and even in the chemical business was also there. ET Now: So to understand and to put things in perspective for our viewers and for your shareholders, you are confirming to us that as of now you do not see there would be a demand crunch in your soda ash business? RS Jalan: See I would say that if you look at the soda ash demand in the last quarter which is Q4 2017 you will find there was robust growth in the demand. And overall if you look at the year as a whole in 2016-17 you will find the overall demand has grown by around 5%. So I do not see any challenge in the demand but of course as I have been mentioning before in the soda ash business new players are coming in Turkey which adding around three million tons of capacity. So that definitely in the later part of the year can create a kind of supply pressure not on the demand pressure. Demand, we believe is going to be further strengthened because the
Source: ECONOMIC TIMES