Shahjibazar Power posts profit decline in Jul-Dec
Shahjibazar Power Company Limited (SPCL) has reported a 56% year-on-year consolidated profit decline in the first six months of the current fiscal year compared to the same period of the previous year. During this period, the company recorded a consolidated profit of Tk28.48 crore, significantly lower than the Tk65.84 crore reported in the same period last year.
In the July-December period, SPCL's consolidated revenue stood at Tk627 crore, which was down from Tk688 crore in the previous fiscal year. On Monday, the company's share price closed at Tk32.80, marking a 2.96% decrease on the Dhaka Stock Exchange. Meanwhile, its earnings per share (EPS) for the period dropped to Tk1.46, compared to Tk3.38 a year earlier.
For the October-December quarter of 2024, the company reported consolidated revenue of Tk322 crore, an increase from Tk307 crore in the same quarter last year. However, its net profit for the quarter declined slightly, from Tk22.07 crore in the previous year to Tk21.18 crore in the current year.
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The company attributed the decline in EPS to a lower plant factor, which dropped to 41% this quarter compared to 55% last year. After the expiration of its Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) in February 2024, SPCL resumed operations on 1 August 2024 under a "No Electricity, No Payment" arrangement. This led to the company's EPS falling from Tk2.05 to Tk0.88.
Consolidated EPS also decreased by Tk1.92, with SPCL's subsidiary, Petromax Refinery Limited (PRL), contributing to a reduction of Tk1.55 per share. PRL's performance decline was attributed to high profits in the first half of FY 2023-2024 driven by increased petroleum product prices, stable sales prices in the current half-year period, and increased financial expenses caused by higher interest rates and foreign exchange rates.
In February last year, SPCL's sole power plant, with a capacity of 86 megawatts, was completely shut down after the expiration of its 15-year PPA with the Bangladesh Power Development Board.
