KIOCL returns to Rs 5.02 crore profit in September quarter

KIOCL Limited reported standalone profit after tax of Rs 5.02 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2026, compared with losses in the preceding and year-ago quarters, as total revenue rose to Rs 202.96 crore from Rs 180.46 crore in April-June and Rs 162.32 crore a year earlier.

How did KIOCL return to quarterly profit?

KIOCL returned to profit in the September 2026 quarter with profit after tax of Rs 5.02 crore, compared with a loss after tax of Rs 15.48 crore in the quarter ended June 30, 2026, and a loss of Rs 17.16 crore in the quarter ended September 30, 2025. Profit before tax was Rs 5.70 crore, against losses before tax of Rs 15.95 crore sequentially and Rs 17.15 crore a year earlier. The reported quarterly profit followed deferred-tax expense of Rs 0.68 crore.

The profit reversal came as revenue rose while expenditure was almost unchanged from the preceding quarter. Total expenses were Rs 197.26 crore in July-September, compared with Rs 196.41 crore in April-June, while total revenue rose by Rs 22.50 crore. Compared with the September 2025 quarter, expenses increased from Rs 179.47 crore, but total revenue increased by a larger Rs 40.64 crore. Profit before tax consequently improved by Rs 21.65 crore from the June-quarter loss.

What drove KIOCL’s revenue increase?

KIOCL reported income from operations of Rs 179.90 crore in the September 2026 quarter, up from Rs 158.01 crore in the preceding quarter and Rs 142.54 crore in the corresponding quarter of 2025. Net sales or income from operations was Rs 179.80 crore, while other operating income was Rs 0.10 crore. The quarter-on-quarter increase in income from operations was Rs 21.89 crore.

Other income increased to Rs 23.06 crore in the September quarter from Rs 22.45 crore in the June quarter and Rs 19.78 crore a year earlier. Total revenue therefore rose by Rs 22.50 crore sequentially, comprising a Rs 21.89 crore rise in income from operations and a Rs 0.61 crore increase in other income. The year-on-year increase in total revenue was Rs 40.64 crore.

Operating income remained the larger component of revenue in each reported quarter. In July-September 2026, income from operations of Rs 179.90 crore accounted for most of the Rs 202.96 crore total revenue, while other income was Rs 23.06 crore. The equivalent figures in April-June were Rs 158.01 crore and Rs 22.45 crore. The results statement does not provide product-wise sales volumes or an explanation of the revenue movement.

Which costs changed during the September quarter?

KIOCL’s power and fuel expense increased to Rs 96.02 crore in the September quarter from Rs 60.94 crore in the June quarter and Rs 78.94 crore a year earlier. Consumable stores, spares and additives rose to Rs 38.84 crore from Rs 32.89 crore sequentially, while employee-benefits expense fell to Rs 33.93 crore from Rs 35.09 crore. These movements were recorded within total expenses of Rs 197.26 crore, Rs 0.85 crore above the June-quarter total.

Changes in inventories of pellet feed and finished products were an expense of Rs 6.57 crore in the September quarter, compared with a Rs 6.22 crore credit in April-June and an expense of Rs 3.11 crore a year earlier. Finance costs were unchanged sequentially at Rs 3.61 crore, compared with Rs 3.64 crore in the year-ago quarter. Depreciation and amortisation was Rs 8.07 crore, below Rs 8.20 crore in June and Rs 9.84 crore a year earlier.

Other expenses declined to Rs 8.79 crore from Rs 10.01 crore in the preceding quarter and Rs 11.46 crore in the September 2025 quarter. Lifetime expected credit loss was Rs 1.04 crore, compared with Rs 2.13 crore in June; the year-ago quarter had a Rs 0.27 crore write-back. Direct cost towards service contracts was Rs 0.39 crore, against Rs 0.04 crore in June and Rs 0.33 crore a year earlier. The filing presents these as accounting-line movements and does not state their operational causes.

What do KIOCL’s half-year results show?

KIOCL remained loss-making for the half year ended September 30, 2026, reporting a loss after tax of Rs 10.46 crore despite the September-quarter profit of Rs 5.02 crore. The half-year loss narrowed from Rs 54.95 crore in the corresponding half year ended September 30, 2025. Loss before tax narrowed to Rs 10.25 crore from Rs 55.64 crore, meaning the second-quarter profit did not fully offset the June-quarter loss.

Half-year total revenue was Rs 383.42 crore, compared with Rs 270.41 crore in the corresponding prior-year period. Income from operations increased to Rs 337.91 crore from Rs 233.48 crore, while other income rose to Rs 45.51 crore from Rs 36.93 crore. Total expenses increased to Rs 393.67 crore from Rs 326.05 crore. Revenue was therefore Rs 113.01 crore higher year on year, while expenses were Rs 67.62 crore higher.

Basic and diluted earnings per share, or EPS, for the first half was negative Rs 0.17, compared with negative Rs 0.90 in the first half of the previous year. EPS was positive Rs 0.08 for the September quarter after negative Rs 0.25 in June and negative Rs 0.28 a year earlier. KIOCL calculated EPS using 60.78 crore equity shares with a face value of Rs 10 each. No exceptional items were reported, so profit before tax matched profit before exceptional items.

How did KIOCL’s segments contribute to the quarterly result?

KIOCL’s pellet plant reported segment revenue of Rs 7.54 crore in the September quarter, compared with Rs 59.81 crore in the preceding quarter and Rs 3.21 crore a year earlier. The pig iron plant had no segment revenue in July-September, after Rs 1.05 crore in April-June. Other operating revenue from service contracts was Rs 172.26 crore, up from Rs 97.14 crore sequentially and Rs 139.33 crore a year earlier.

The pellet plant recorded segment profit of Rs 2.81 crore, reversing a loss of Rs 14.54 crore in the preceding quarter and a loss of Rs 48.76 crore a year earlier. The pig iron plant reported a loss of Rs 1.28 crore, compared with losses of Rs 1.04 crore and Rs 3.83 crore in the respective comparison periods. Treasury income was Rs 14.21 crore, while income from services net of expenses was a loss of Rs 10.04 crore, compared with a Rs 14.03 crore loss in June.

Conclusion

KIOCL’s September-quarter profit of Rs 5.02 crore replaced losses in both comparison quarters, supported by a Rs 22.50 crore sequential increase in total revenue while total expenses rose by Rs 0.85 crore. The pellet plant moved to a Rs 2.81 crore segment profit, but the company remained at a Rs 10.46 crore loss after tax for the first half ended September 30, 2026.

The unresolved issue in the filing is whether the quarterly profit can offset the first-quarter loss over a longer period. Subsequent results will show whether income from operations remains near the September-quarter level of Rs 179.90 crore and how power and fuel expense, which was Rs 96.02 crore in the quarter, develops. The board approved the unaudited standalone results on November 6, 2026.