MUMBAI, May 30 (Reuters) – Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSE.NS), part of the Adani Group, said on Tuesday that losses stemming from the sale of Myanmar port project impacted its fourth-quarter profit.
India’s largest private port operator reported a 5.1% rise in net profit at 11.59 billion rupees from a year ago, while its revenue from operations surged nearly 40%.
Adani Ports had earlier this month said it sold its sanction-hit Myanmar port for $30 million, significantly lower than its investment in the project.
The company said the sale consideration was revised from $260 million, resulting in an impairment loss of 12.73 billion rupees.
Despite that, it kept its capital expenditure guidance at 40-45 billion rupees for financial year ending March 30.
The company said it expects cargo volumes at 370-390 million metric tonnes, resulting in a revenue of 240-250 billion rupees and core earnings of 145-150 billion rupees in 2023-24.
Adani Ports was one of several Adani group companies that was caught in the eye of a storm since Jan. 24 when U.S.-based short seller Hindenburg Research raised concerns on the conglomerate’s debt levels and use of tax havens.
However, India’s markets watchdog has “drawn a blank” in its probe into suspected violations in overseas investments and its ongoing pursuit of the case could be a “journey without a destination”, a court-appointed panel had said.
Meanwhile, the company said its promoters have pre-paid loans raised by pledging company shares, resulting in a reduction of its pledged shares to 4.66% as on March 31, compared with 17.31% as on Dec. 31.
Reporting by Sethuraman NR in Mumbai
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