BCL Industries Q2 volumes fall 3% despite ethanol shutdown

BCL Industries Limited reported Q2FY27 distillery volume of 62,015 kilolitres (KL), only 3% below the prior year, despite its 200-kilolitres-per-day ethanol plant being shut from 19 June 2026 until 28 August 2026. Extra neutral alcohol (ENA) volume rose 86% year on year to 22,514 KL, while a new Bathinda unit partly offset lost ethanol production.

What stopped BCL Industries' ethanol plant?

BCL Industries' 200 kilolitres-per-day (KLPD) ethanol plant stopped after a fire at an ethanol receiver tank on 19 June 2026. The company said the plant was reinstated on 28 August 2026, placing the disruption across much of Q2FY27.

BCL Industries has lodged an insurance claim related to the fire and expects it to be settled in Q3FY27. The November 2026 presentation does not disclose the claim amount, the precise volume lost because of the shutdown, or whether any insurance recovery was included in Q2FY27 results.

The interruption occurred while BCL Industries was adding capacity. Its new 150 KLPD Bathinda unit was commissioned in July 2026 and, according to management, partly offset the production that was lost at the stopped ethanol plant.

How did BCL Industries hold Q2 volume near flat?

BCL Industries held combined reported ENA and ethanol volume to 62,015 KL in Q2FY27, compared with 63,879 KL in Q2FY26. The 1,864-KL decline reflected a 12,249-KL reduction in ethanol volume that was mostly offset by a 10,385-KL increase in ENA volume.

ENA rose to 22,514 KL from 12,129 KL, while ethanol declined to 39,501 KL from 51,750 KL. ENA therefore accounted for about 36% of the two reported product volumes in Q2FY27, compared with about 19% in Q2FY26, based on the presentation's volume data.

The half-year comparison shows the shift began before the June incident was fully reflected in Q2. H1FY27 ENA volume more than doubled to 41,890 KL from 20,089 KL, while ethanol volume fell to 77,288 KL from 107,211 KL in H1FY26.

How did BCL Industries' distillery revenue mix change?

BCL Industries' Q2FY27 distillery revenue mix shifted toward ENA, which contributed Rs 132 crore, or 26% of the Rs 504 crore segment total. In Q2FY26, ENA generated Rs 83 crore and represented 15% of Rs 555 crore segment revenue.

Ethanol revenue declined to Rs 265 crore in Q2FY27 from Rs 367 crore a year earlier, reducing its segment revenue share to 53% from 65%. Overall distillery segment revenue fell Rs 51 crore year on year, while ENA revenue increased Rs 49 crore, illustrating how the product change limited the revenue effect of lower ethanol volume.

The presentation also records a larger contribution from the category labelled PML. PML represented 11% of Q2FY27 distillery revenue, up from 7% in Q2FY26, while distillers dried grains with solubles, or DDGS, increased to 9% of revenue from 8%; the share described as others fell to 1% from 5%.

In H1FY27, the same composition change was evident on a larger base. ENA revenue rose to Rs 243 crore from Rs 139 crore, while ethanol revenue decreased to Rs 506 crore from Rs 727 crore; total distillery revenue declined to Rs 970 crore from Rs 1,081 crore.

What happened to BCL Industries' distillery profitability?

BCL Industries reported Q2FY27 distillery earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of Rs 59 crore, compared with Rs 60 crore in Q2FY26. EBITDA margin rose to 11.9% from 11.0%, although segment revenue declined 9% to Rs 504 crore.

The half-year figures show EBITDA increased despite lower segment revenue. H1FY27 distillery EBITDA was Rs 117 crore against Rs 113 crore in H1FY26, and EBITDA margin expanded to 12.1% from 10.5%, while revenue fell Rs 111 crore to Rs 970 crore.

BCL Industries does not attribute the margin changes to one product, the 150 KLPD Bathinda unit, or the shutdown. The presentation reports the earnings trend alongside the higher ENA contribution, but does not disclose product-level margins or the financial effect of the fire.

At the consolidated level, BCL Industries reported Q2FY27 total revenue of Rs 699 crore, down from Rs 721 crore, and EBITDA of Rs 66 crore, down from Rs 69 crore. Consolidated EBITDA margin was unchanged at 9.5%, while profit after tax decreased to Rs 29 crore from Rs 32 crore.

What does BCL Industries' post-shutdown ethanol allocation cover?

BCL Industries and its wholly owned Svaksha Distillery received an additional 43,700 KL ethanol allocation for Q4 of ethanol supply year 2025-26, which runs from August through October 2026. The period overlaps with the 28 August 2026 reinstatement of BCL Industries' ethanol plant.

The allocation comprised 23,500 KL for BCL Industries and 20,200 KL for Svaksha Distillery. The company said the additional allocation lifted its ESY 2025-26 order book 41% to 15.11 crore litres, from an original allocation schedule of 151,109 KL plus the additional Q4 volume.

BCL Industries said oil marketing companies added 149 crore litres for Q4 ESY 2025-26, and that its combined additional allocation of 4.37 crore litres was close to 3% of that pool. The presentation does not provide production, delivery or revenue achieved against the allocation as of November 2026.

Conclusion

BCL Industries limited the Q2FY27 volume effect of the June fire by raising ENA output and commissioning the 150 KLPD Bathinda unit. Ethanol volume fell 24% to 39,501 KL, but ENA increased 86% to 22,514 KL, leaving combined reported volume only 3% lower and shifting ENA to 26% of distillery revenue from 15%.

The next disclosed items to watch are the expected Q3FY27 insurance-claim settlement and output following the 28 August 2026 plant reinstatement. BCL Industries also has the additional 43,700-KL allocation for August to October 2026, while the presentation leaves unresolved how much of that allocation was produced or delivered.