By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, August 9, 2017: The Indian government owned National Aluminium Co Ltd (NALCO) has registered a net profit of Rs 129 crore in the first quarter (Q1) of the current fiscal 2017-18, compared to Rs 135 crore in the corresponding previous fiscal.

According to the reviewed financial results for the first three months of the this financial year, taken on record by the Board of Directors in a meeting held here on Wednesday, operating income is up by 45 per cent compared to the same period the previous year.

A Company statement claimed that NALCO has achieved remarkable growth in production on all fronts.

Bauxite production was 18.81 lakh tonnes during the quarter, registering a 10.4 per cent growth over 17.04 lakh tonnes produced in the corresponding period of previous year.

Alumina hydrate production was 5.26 lakh tonnes, which is 0.4 per cent higher as compared to 5.24 lakh tonnes produced during the corresponding period of last fiscal, the statement added.

The company produced 1,00,695 tonnes of aluminium during this period, which is 6.6 per cent more than 94,496 tonnes produced in the 1st quarter of previous financial year.

The net power generated during the quarter was 1,599 million units. This has gone up by 7.4 per cent, against 1,489 million units generated in the corresponding period of last year.

Besides, in the field of renewable energy, the company has generated 88 million units of wind power during these three months.

The total alumina sale during the quarter was 2.59 lakh tonnes and of aluminium 88,752 tonnes.

“However, considering the sluggishness of international metal market, NALCO’s performance is considered a ‘Silver Lining’ amidst the downturn in both domestic and overseas markets,” the statement said.