Ashok Leyland Ltd. (ALL) standalone net profit for the September quarter grew almost threefold over the year earlier period to ₹561 crore.
Revenue from operations rose to ₹9,638 crore from ₹8,266 crore, while cost of materials increased to ₹6,992 crore from ₹5,832 crore, the bus and truck manufacturer said.
The results included an exceptional loss of ₹23 crore pertaining to impairment loss and write-off of intangible assets under development.
“We continue to see strong demand in all segments of trucks and passenger vehicles. The industry continues to post strong growth on the back of strong macroeconomic factors and we are confident that FY24 will see further growth in the second half as well,” said executive chairman Dheeraj Hinduja.
“While International business globally is challenged owing to the conflicts across the globe, we are intensifying our expansion strategy in our focus markets of Middle East, Africa and Asia,” he said.
On Thursday, the board approved infusion of ₹1,200 crore in Switch Mobility as equity through its holding company Optare PLC UK. It will be done over the next few months in one or more tranches.
The funds will be used for capital expenditure, R&D and meeting operational requirements both in U.K. and India.
“We are very happy with the progress made by Switch and ALL would continue to invest on building its capabilities,” he said adding that they have not shelved the idea of raising funds from third parties.
Mr. Hinduja said that Switch will grow further in the European markets with the launch of new E1 12m bus developed specifically for the European market in 2024. The portfolio of electric buses will cover value and premium segments meeting all price points for many global markets. The company has a robust plan and it is going in the right direction.
“Both India and European markets are going to be important growth centers for EV trucks and buses. In the coming year we are expecting our e-LCVs to drive faster customer adoption. The balance sheet of Ashok Leyland can comfortably fund the initiatives of Switch,” said MD & CEO Shenu Agarwal.
ALL performance in Q3/Q4 will be better than the first half. The growth momentum will continue, said CFO Gopal Mahadevan.
Published - November 09, 2023 08:05 pm IST
