Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary
November 9, 2020
Earnings Call Speaker Segments
Operator
operatorLadies and gentlemen, good day, and welcome to the Steel Authority of India Q2 FY '21 Earnings Conference Call, hosted by DAM Capital Advisors Ltd. [Operator Instructions] Please note that this conference is being recorded. I now hand the conference over to Mr. Ashish Kejriwal from DAM Capital Advisors Ltd. Thank you, and over to you, sir.
Ashish Kejriwal
analystYes. Thanks, Levlyn . Good evening, everyone. We are pleased to host the management of Steel Authority of India represented by Mr. Amit Sen, Director of Finance; along with his team. Now I would request Mr. Sen for his opening remarks, and then we can open the floor for Q&A. Over to you, sir.
Amit Sen
executiveGood afternoon. First of all, let me thank Mr. Ashish Kejriwal of IDFC for arranging this con call, and I welcome all of you to the investors con call on the financial results of SAIL for Q2 of 2021. So as you know, we had a very bad Q1 where we made a loss of almost INR 2,000 crores because of the COVID impact and the lockdown of the company. Q2, of course, was significantly better. After the COVID lifted, July actually was a bit shaky because the full impact of the slowdown hadn't been lifted so there was now impact of slowdown in July. August and September were reasonably good. And our financial results of Q2, as you have already seen, we made our -- EBITDA before exceptional items was INR 2,098 crores; after exception items, INR 2,320 crores. I think you'll be asking me about these exceptional items, so we'll come back more on that. The profit before tax in Q2 was INR 610 crores, and profit after tax, INR 393 crores. Our [indiscernible] also has been fairly favorable. Our long-term debt to equity at the end of Q2 was 0.75. Our EBITDA margin was about 14%. And EBITDA per tonne of saleable steel has been about 5,500 bps, therefore, it is almost close to INR 39,000 crores. In Q2, our sales grew by about 1 million tonnes as compared to Q2 of the previous year. But the EBITDA actually remained broadly flat because I'm comparing now second quarter...
Operator
operatorSorry to interrupt, sir. This is the operator. We are not able to hear you clearly. Your voice is breaking up. [Technical Difficulty]
Amit Sen
executiveOkay. I don't know at which point I got disconnected. But what I was saying is Q2 was obviously much better than Q1. Q1, our performance was very bad. So I just read out the figures. We repeat that. I believe you already know. So we had a PBT of INR 610 crore, and we sold about 1 million tonnes of saleable steel more in Q2 of this year as compared to the Q2 of the previous year. Our NSR have been broadly the same because -- I'm comparing actually second quarter to second quarter because Q1 to Q2 hardly made a fair comparison because Q1 was an abnormal quarter. So in Q2 of last year, our EBITDA was falling. And Q2 of this year, it has been abiding in as far as the selling price, but the average for both the quarters has been more or less the same on a per tonne basis. Selling price per tonne has almost been the same. But in terms of volume, we have sold 1 million tonnes more than what we sold in the previous Q2 of the last year. But there was a difference in the sales mix. So in the second quarter of last year, we -- the export sales was about 7% of the total sales. Whereas in this Q2, our export sales is around 16%. And so that sort of depressed the overall NSR because the export prices are about INR 2,000 lower in this second quarter as compared to the Q2 of last year. So export prices were depressed, but because of the lack of demand in the whole market, we have to export a lot. Plus we had some export commitments, which we have taken in Q1, which we had to fulfill. So with all that, we reported that, that, of course, which is also helped by volume of the imported coal prices. The imported coal price has been at a pretty low level. But that index was about $107, $110. In September, of course, it had gone up to $124 for the month as a whole. But again, it has come down in the month of October. Today, it is at $107, $108 again. So we had a good benefit from the imported coal price. We had some benefit from the rising selling price. We got good would benefit from the increase in demand. So that was it. Plus, we also managed to sell some iron ore fines. So in our profit, we also have about INR 100-odd crores of profit that we earned by selling the iron ore fines. These are sale of fresh fines. We still don't have the permission from Jharkhand to sell this subgrade. So -- but we sold around 5 million tonnes of fresh fines in Q1, and we are selling a lot now. In October itself, here, we sold about another 5 million tonnes -- 5 lakhs tonnes, 5 lakh tonnes in month of October. So the total that we have sold till October is about 11 lakhs tonnes. So this is the position that it is now going forward. We are very hopeful of a healthy Q3 and a much better Q4. So Q3 has started off well. Our October results have come in. I cannot disclose, but they're reasonably good October results. But in November and December, we're expecting even better results. The NSRs had moved up. The price of our [indiscernible] have moved up. The imported coal price is still low. So -- and the demand, again, is very good. There are some products where the prices are stable, which are not moving up. But by and large in the other products, there is an upward movement. So we expect this benefit to continue in the whole of Q3 and the whole of Q4. And we are quite hopeful that by the end of 9 months, we'll be able to square up our losses and report a profit because we have about INR 1,374 crores of loss carryforward at the end of H1. So we are confident that by the end of Q3, we'll be able to wipe out that losses and report a profit. And Q4 will be reserved entirely for profit. As you imagine, there are no other surprises. We're also hoping that after Diwali, the construction and infrastructure sector will pick up because the monsoons are over. Of course, COVID-19 is still there, but as the indication that we're getting from our marketing team and that we've seen is that -- and the government is also announcing a lot of construction projects, infrastructure projects. So all these things, if they really come together, then maybe post-Diwali, there should be a pickup in the construction sector. And because we said about 60% -- more than 60% of our steel goes to this one particular sector, so any upside in this sector is going to help us a lot. Whatever we have done so far is without any growth in construction. So once the growth in construction sector comes up, then we believe it'll keep on adding to the quantity as well as the price. So that is all from my side for the opening remarks. If you want to ask anything?
Operator
operator[Operator Instructions] The first question is from the line of Hardik Shah from SBI Mutual Fund.
Hardik Shah
analystYes. So just -- could you just let us know what is the CapEx for the current year and next year?
Amit Sen
executiveOur CapEx plan in 2021 is INR 4,000 crores, of which we have done about INR 1,475 crores till September. But the government has requested us to increase -- to try and increase our CapEx this year to INR 4,800 crores. So we are seeing if that is possible. But right now, our target, as published, is INR 4,000 crores this year.
Hardik Shah
analystAnd sir, where would you see the debt moving, say, by end of current year and the next year? So we see that it's come down from INR 55,000 crores to INR 50,000 crores.
Amit Sen
executiveSee, our actual debt result adjusting for IND AS as on 30th September was INR 48,200 crores. What you see in the balance sheet is after IND AS adjustment for the lease and OpEx, but the actual borrowing is INR 48,200 crores . This is INR 3,500 crores lower than what it was at the beginning of the quarter. So as compared to 30th June, we have reduced our borrowing by INR 3,500 crores. And this is backed up by a large collections in the month of July and August, where the collections were almost to the tune of INR 6,400 crores in each month.
Hardik Shah
analystWas this reduction would be in working capital or long term also?
Amit Sen
executiveIt's both. We are reducing both, but we are reducing our long term more because the long-term loans are more costly. We still have about 7% plus long-term loans, so we are trying to repay those loans first. Also, we have reduced the proportion of long-term loans in the total loan portfolio. So earlier, our long-term loans used to be around 70% of the total borrowing. Today, as of 30th September, it is about -- it is less than 60%.
Hardik Shah
analystUnderstood. Final question. What is -- what scheduled repayments for the current and next year?
Amit Sen
executiveHow much is current and next year?
Unknown Executive
executive[indiscernible]
Amit Sen
executiveOkay. So our repayment commitment this year was INR 2,600 crores. Out of that, almost the entire thing has been paid off, except INR 44 crores, which will be paid [indiscernible] INR 44 crores. With that, the entire long-term repayment commitment is over.
Hardik Shah
analystAnd next year?
Amit Sen
executiveAnd our payment schedule next year is about INR 2,500 crores.
Operator
operatorWe'll move on to the next question. That is from the line of Amit Dixit from Edelweiss.
Amit Dixit
analystI have 2 questions. First one is on the other expenses. So if I look at other expenses per tonne, on per tonne basis, that has gone down significantly, both Y-o-Y as well as Q-o-Q. So just wanted to understand if there is a one-off over here or there are some sustainable cost-reduction initiatives that you might have taken. So some light on that will be brilliant.
Amit Sen
executiveSo talking of second quarter, you're comparing with what?
Amit Dixit
analystNo, second quarter, Q2 FY '21 with the Q2 FY '20 or even -- I mean Q1 FY '21. So Q1 FY '21, I know it is -- I mean, it's both unfair a compare. But even if I compare Y-o-Y, other expense this quarter was down.
Amit Sen
executiveThis is expenses. So mainly the -- I'm looking at the details now. Mainly the saving has come from enhancement of stores and spares, and there's a saving in power and fuel. In power and fuel, actually, we have saved around INR 200 crores; and in stores and spares, around INR 80 crores. Major savings are actually in these categories only. Mainly that is in power and fuel. That is where the saving has come from. And one reason for that because the saleable steel, the production volume was slightly higher this Q2 if I compare to the previous Q. It is about -- in Q2 of this year, we produced 2 lakh tonnes more than what we produced in Q2 of last year, but that we produced at a lower expenditure, lower costs. The bulk of the saving has come from power and fuel. [indiscernible] specific power consumption for our saleable steel has come done, the power [indiscernible].
Amit Dixit
analystOkay. The second question is on the sales volume guidance. So we have seen that you have published your October sales volume as well. And it's, again, a very good increase of 21% Y-o-Y. So -- and you mentioned that you see a much better period going ahead. So what kind of sales volume guidance would you give us for this year and maybe for next year?
Amit Sen
executiveThe saleable steel sales.
Amit Dixit
analystYes, sir.
Amit Sen
executiveRight. So actually, the figure we're looking at, our internal target is about 15.5 million.
Amit Dixit
analystThis is for FY '21?
Amit Sen
executiveIn FY '21, yes. 15.5 million is the figure that we are targeting. And most likely, we'll achieve that because the amount that we need to sell each month is around 1.55 million target, which we can easily do, which is under control.
Amit Dixit
analystAnd what about next year, sir?
Amit Sen
executiveNext year, I don't know. Actually, our target initially was 18 million. But then -- so next year, we'll be targeting to, I think, full capacity from the beginning. And if we do that and if the demand supports us, we have a capacity of 18 million tonnes of saleable steel. Because we were adversely impacted in Q1, not just Q1, first 4 months, so we had to scale down our sales target. But next year, if there are no such disruption, we -- and if the market permits, then we should be able to sell 18 million.
Operator
operatorThe next question is from the line of Rahul Jain from Systematix.
Rahul Jain
analystI'm wondering also on -- coming back to the capacity question. So as we see on your presentation, you almost completed the CapEx of around INR 60,000 crores plus. So should we assume now that we are completely commissioned and that nothing is stopping us from reaching 20 million tonne for next year?
Amit Sen
executiveI didn't get the -- what did you say at the end?
Rahul Jain
analystNo, sir. So we -- have we completed the CapEx program? Or is it there something we should...
Amit Sen
executiveWe have. We have. Actually, a couple of small things are left. But the one major item which is still left is the fourth caster of billet, which will add about 1 million tonnes to our capacity, steel capacity. And that has not been completed because we need to change the configuration of the caster. So I think I explained that last time also. It was designed to be a beam blank caster, and we will be changing it to a bloom-cum-beam blank caster. So we are negotiating with the vendor. And once we finalize the price then -- so that is the only thing -- major thing which is left us and a couple of small balancing things that are also there. But as far as capacity is concerned, 1 million tonne is pending because of the core project.
Rahul Jain
analystAnd sir, you were saying even the CapEx is over or that is -- will happen after this is complete?
Amit Sen
executiveWhich one?
Rahul Jain
analystThe raw material expansion that...
Amit Sen
executiveNo, no, raw material expansion, see, like we have targeted INR 10,000 crores in raw material. And we've actually done very little in that area because of various clearances. So one thing which I can share with you right now is I think 2 or 3 days back, we have received the Stage-II Forest Clearance of the -- of one of the leases of Gua Mine. We have a mine in Jharkhand called the Gua Mine. That's 2 leases: the Duargaiburu lease and the Topailore lease. The Duargaiburu lease, which is a bigger lease, the expansion of that was held up because we did not have the Forest Clearance and the final shuttling between the Jharkhand State Government and the [indiscernible]. So I believe on Friday, I think, or Thursday or Friday, the Jharkhand State Government has finally recommended the Stage-II Forest Clearance of Gua Mine because [indiscernible] It was in agreement in any case. So once we get that clearance for the Duargaiburu lease of Gua, then in Gua Mine, there are massive capacity expansion that we are planning. So that, we'll be able to start once the clearance is there. So that is one positive development, which has happened very recently. And also, we are contracting for some MDOs in some of the other mines, like Taldih and a couple of other mines, so that's all good. So there, output...
Rahul Jain
analystRight. The INR 10,000 crore CapEx will not be there? I mean is there a new number for that now?
Amit Sen
executiveSee, in this MDO, the expenditure is not ours, the Taldih MDO I was saying, yes. It's an MDO and the entire CapEx is on there. Well, we have to spend about INR 115 crores for some power supply projects to draw the power to some point. That's all. But that's what...
Rahul Jain
analystSo do you have any revised number in mind then for the CapEx from actual INR 10,000 crores?
Amit Sen
executiveNo, no, no, the INR 10,000 crores remain because we spend only about INR 1,700 crores of it. So that INR 10,000 crores is still -- I think we don't have all the clearances either. So the Gua thing will probably get cleared soon from the end of year. But we also have clearances pending from Chiria. We have the biggest deposit steel in Chiria. So that is...
Rahul Jain
analystYes. But I was reading somewhere that, that may not really happen because there's too much of forest around and things like that.
Amit Sen
executiveBut we're still trying as for that, and the mines is there and -- sorry, the forest is there. Forest [indiscernible] whatever. But efforts are going on. Even our ministry is getting involved with that. Not only that. I believe more than. They're also talking to [ MOEFM ] -- all the other agencies definitely. So our CapEx for mines has not changed. It still remains INR 10,000 crores.
Rahul Jain
analystSo finally, sir, how much are we also looking at selling iron ore this year and for next year? Do you have any targets?
Amit Sen
executiveActually, I think it's a difficult question. What we have sold till October is about 11 lakh tonnes. Like now, we still don't have all the clearances for subgrade. Looking for [indiscernible] mines, let's say -- there are 4 clearances required for selling subgrade: the State Government clearance, the EC Amendment, the CTE and the CTO, right? So in Orissa, we have received 3 out of -- only the CTO is left the Bolani Mine. And we are hoping, that I think, by end of October, probably, we'll be getting the CTO. In Bolani, we have a massive amount of subgrade. I think 7 million tonnes is there in Bolani. So once we get that clearance, all the other things are already being available, so we'll be able to start from Bolani the subgrade transfer. But we have already done one auction for subgrade in Barsua, which is also another mine in Orissa. We have sold about -- we have auctioned 1 lakh tonnes of billings. Actually, we did 2 auctions: There was one 59% Fe, one 54% Fe. We got a reasonably good price. And fresh fines, of course, we are going on doing it. The problem is that we are constrained because we are after the consumer. And as our production is picking up, our demand for our own ore is increasing. So the quantity, the spare quantity available for sale in the fresh fines is not very much. What we can really sell in a big way is the subgrade. So I think at least the Orissa clearance will come by the end of this month. And Jharkhand, again, there's a lot of movement. Many -- I think secretary of steel has spoken to the secretary in Jharkhand. [indiscernible] there as well. In Jharkhand, there is one particular lease called the Topailore lease wherein the 3 clearances are already in place: the EC Amendment, CTE and CTO. There is about 6 million tonnes of subgrade available in the Topailore lease. Once we get the State Government clearance, we can immediately start doing auctions for Topailore. So we don't want to put a number because we still don't have the clearances in place, but we are hopeful for a reasonably good quantity to be sold this year.
Operator
operatorThe next question is from the line of Gaurav Rateria from Morgan Stanley.
Gaurav Rateria
analystSir, 2, 3 questions. Firstly, the proportion of the semis in the DSP plant is still very high, and it has been like that for the last 2, 3, 4, 5, whatever number of years you want to take. So what would be the ideal mix of semis in that if the long product demand were to improve? Or do we need to change something with respect to putting some CapEx to kind of really improve the mix of that plant from semis to long product?
Amit Sen
executiveActually, in July, we set up a new plant at Bar and Rod Mill, but -- that's a 0.9 million tonne. So the Bar and Rod Mill has not yet developed. It's still under ramping up. So once the [indiscernible], then that will absorb all the billets that we produce. So today, because there's a mismatch between the billets we produce and the pellets being consumed in the BRM, so that is giving right to some semis that the BRM is ramping up very quickly. You mentioned Bhilai, isn't it?
Gaurav Rateria
analystSir, I wanted to understand about the DSP, the Durgapur Steel.
Amit Sen
executiveSorry, sorry. Durgapur, I thought you said BSP. Okay. So in Durgapur, actually, again, they are the same program. We have like a Medium Structural Mill, MSM. That has its own issues. I mean there's a lack of demand for the MSM product. MSM was supposed to absorb the entire -- or the bulk of the [indiscernible]. But because of lack of demand, MSM is not -- is running at very below capacity. But we are not shortening the steelmaking because then the cost will go up. So we are keeping the steelmaking going, and that is generating a lot of semis. And we are getting some of the semis converted into TMT and some of them converted into other areas -- SBUs that we have. And the rest of the semis, we are selling. At the same time, our marketing is also making a lot of effort in generating demand for the MSM product. So if the MSM picks up, then the proportion of semis in Durgapur will come down.
Gaurav Rateria
analystSir, you said that November and December should be good for construction season. What would be the mix of semis at overall sale level in the month of October? And what is it likely to come down in the months of November, December? What are you expecting internally?
Amit Sen
executiveThe proportion of semis may not change much because the problem -- why we're generating so much semis is not because of the construction sector being there or not being there. It is because of a demand of the product of 2 particular mills that we have just set up, one is the Medium Structural Mill in Durgapur; the other is the USM, Universal Section Mill in Durgapur. So the Durgapur plant makes the heavy surplus, which are used in the project construction. And the MSM of Durgapur makes medium structural. For whatever reason, the demand for these products is not much. So even if the construction activity picks up, if the mix of the requirement in the market is not the kind of mix that is produced in these 2 plants, our proportion of semis may not come down.
Gaurav Rateria
analystGot it, sir. So second question on the receivables. Sir, the profile has changed quite a bit in the last 2 years. How much is the government money due? And what do you expect it to come down to from INR 8,200 crores? Does it -- is it likely to come down to INR 4,500 crores or INR 5,000 crores, which was the historical normal levels?
Amit Sen
executiveIn this INR 8,200 crores of debt, INR 6,000 crores is from railways, right? So out of the INR 6,000 crores, normally, railway has about 2 months of supply -- 2 months of reversal outstanding, which net us at today's price would have been around INR 1,600 crores. So INR 6,000 crores minus INR 1,600 crores, INR 4,500 crores of additional receivables that we have from railway. That is becoming a huge cause of concern for us, and we are making efforts at all levels, but that money is not coming. There's a particular concern which is there with the railway. They're not getting the budget for the [indiscernible]. So because of that, they're not able to pay us. So we have -- we are guiding about INR 4,500 crores of extra CapEx beyond what is normal. When it will liquidate? We have no idea. We are making all efforts, but it is still going up.
Gaurav Rateria
analystOkay, sir. Sir, did you mention anything about the borrowing target for the second half by end of fiscal '21? What is it likely to come down to? And by end of fiscal '22, what is likely to come down to in your estimate? That is the last question from me.
Amit Sen
executiveOkay. I didn't mention that at the same. All I said is INR 48,200 crores is our borrowing as on 30th September. Now our collections in the last 2, 3 months has been excellent. In fact, in the month of October also, it has been even better than that. So if we depleted this way, if we deplete the volumes at this rate, so definitely by the time we come to 31st March, even if we set aside the railway outstandings, we should come down to about INR 45,000 crores, around INR 45,000 crores. But then, we are hopeful for 2 things happening: One is that railways will ultimately pay us some forgiveness. This cannot go on piling up forever. So any money that we get from railway will further reduce the outstanding. And in this connection, I have not considered to say about iron ore fines. So whatever we get from the sale of iron ore fines, if the Bolani auctions starts let us say from November, and in case we get the government clearance and along with all the other auctions that are going on in the RMD mines and the Bhilai mine, that will further bring it up. But here, I don't want to put a number because I don't know actually how much it will be. And I also don't know whether they will pay or not. But without railways and without iron ore fines, I'm definitely -- I'm actually confident that the total volume will come down to INR 45,000 crores.
Operator
operatorThe next question is from the line of Pinakin Parekh from JPMorgan.
Pinakin Parekh
analystSir, I have 2 questions. First, I'm just trying to understand the potential margin trend in the second half of the year. Now you gave a very positive outlook on steel sales volume. Coking coal prices are depressed. So that basically leaves realizations as a missing variable. Broadly, sir, at this point of time, what should be the third quarter increase in ASPs per tonne versus the second quarter? And should that entire increase in ASP per tonne flow into margins? Or will there be an increase in terms of other costs, which will negate the margin increase? My second question is, if I look at the quarter-on-quarter performance on a plant-wise basis, IISCO has not seen any improvement. There has been hardly any increase in revenues, and the losses are broadly the same as Q1 levels. So what is the reason for this?
Amit Sen
executiveWhen you say ASP, you mean the average selling price?
Pinakin Parekh
analystYes, sir.
Amit Sen
executiveOkay. So as you mean by there is no growth in ASP, what do you mean? So if our average ASP remains at the level at which it is today, but they're buying more volumes, okay, then definitely, we are going to have a pretty healthy H2 because our coal price most likely will remain low. So China versus Australia conflict, not taking coal from Australia. Lots of coal supply in Australia, meaning the pricing of imported coal very low. So coal is like 32% of our total cost. So if the coal price remains where it is and even if the ASP remains where it is, at the high volumes. So our H2 should be quite good. So we had an EBITDA of how much? We have EBITDA of about INR 2,100 crores in Q2. So that should translate. But in Q2, so we should have maybe around INR 5,000 crores by H2.
Pinakin Parekh
analystINR 5,000 crores of EBITDA in H2. And sir, just to clarify, you said if ASPs remain the same. So if ASPs remain the same, sir, then third quarter ASPs should be higher. By how much was the second quarter ASPs, the average ASPs for the quarter?
Amit Sen
executiveWhen I said ASP remain the same, I'm talking of the quarterly. Definitely, last month ASP, of course, the cycle now moving upwards. See between August and September, price grew by how much, price grew by about 2,000 bps per tonne. Okay. So if I take the price of September only, that is -- that will be even better.
Pinakin Parekh
analystUnderstood. And sir, just about the IISCO's plant performance, what is holding it back?
Amit Sen
executiveThe IISCO, the problem is that we have a single furnace. Like the other steel plants, they have multiple blast furnaces. If one furnace goes down, there is always another furnace to take the load. In IISCO, they have a single furnace and that furnace had some difficulty. Actually, difficulty was going on for quite some time. The furnace, it couldn't perform until there is repair. There was a major problem sometime in September. So since then, they have been operating at way below capacity. They have -- they'll be giving a contract to somebody to do the necessary repairs and all that. But because of COVID and people coming in of that, it is probably end of February by the time the furnace is repaired. So I think it will come to full production, which is about 8,000 tonnes of bar metal per day starting from March. Till that time, this entire, say, 5 months of Q3 and the 3 months of Q3 and 2 months of Q4, we'll be producing at maybe around 5,000, 5,500 tonnes, sir. So that is pushing up the cost heavily.
Operator
operatorThe next question is from the line of Vikash Singh from PhillipCapital.
Vikash Singh
analystSir, like you said that you would be coming back to profitability and probably catching up with the old losses. Sir, I just want to understand once you become profitable, then what happens to the reservation? When it is due?
Amit Sen
executiveI definitely said it will be paid in this current financial year. But since when, that is yet to be decided. How much -- whether it will be for the full year or it will be for the part of the year, that we need to see. But yes, it will be paid for sure.
Vikash Singh
analystSo any expectation in terms of a provision which you have already taken from?
Amit Sen
executiveThe provision that we made for [indiscernible].
Vikash Singh
analystFor businesses in a...
Amit Sen
executiveI didn't get your question. What do you say?
Vikash Singh
analystHave you taken any provision for the proposed wage revision so far?
Amit Sen
executiveNo, I haven't made any -- in the H1 results, we haven't made any provisions because we are not still decided on the date from which it is going to be implemented. Implemented from a past date or it will be implemented prospectively, we have not yet decided on that. That's why we haven't made any provision on that.
Vikash Singh
analystUnderstood. And sir, any update on the sale of those 3 plants. So if I remember correctly, last time you said that you were in talks with a couple of plants in terms of prospective buyers.
Amit Sen
executiveSo 3 plants.
Vikash Singh
analystYes, sir, which we wanted to sell. If I remember correctly, in the last call, you have said that already, you are in talks with some prospective buyers. Any update on there?
Amit Sen
executiveYes. Actually, this is handled by -- there's a government mechanism which handles this, DIPAM, department of the ministry of finance and by the Inter-Ministerial Group or the IMG. So bidders have come for maybe 2 of the plants or 3 of the plants. We are not sure because the way the DIPAM -- the sale of assets is structured, there's a lot of secrecy. So even though it is our asset, we are not actually informed what exactly is happening. That is only known to the transaction adviser and the Inter-Ministerial Group. But this is going on. So we have completed the first stage of this investment. We have now moved on to the second stage. There are some bidders who have been shortlisted. So they have been given out the information, the confidential information, memorandum of sale, the request for proposal. So all these documents have been given to them. Now IMG will decide the date on which they will publish their bids. So it's in a fairly advanced stage.
Vikash Singh
analystUnderstood, sir. And if I may ask one last question. How much of EBITDA during Q2 contributed by sale of iron ore?
Amit Sen
executiveIn Q2, we earned about INR 100 crores.
Vikash Singh
analystOn sale of iron ore? So almost everything would have flowed to EBITDA. Is that correct understanding?
Amit Sen
executiveYes. INR 100 crores is a part of EBITDA
Operator
operatorThe next question is from the line of Kamlesh Bagmar from Prabhudas Lilladher.
Kamlesh Bagmar
analystSir, one question. How much of NSR in this quarter, long and flat and the blended one?
Amit Sen
executiveSo the NSR of long product, well, in second quarter it's 40,704. Flat product is 36,052 and the average of long and flat in the second quarter is 38,059.
Kamlesh Bagmar
analystSo based on the current trends, like, so how much have you seeing NSRs for the coming quarter? Let's say, would it be like INR 60,000, higher than Q2 average? Where do we see the NSRs for the Q3, sir?
Amit Sen
executiveRight. During second quarter, on an average, the NSRs grew by nearly 4,000, right? So if I take the NSR of September and expect that to continue, then the average NSR should increase by INR 2,000 for that.
Kamlesh Bagmar
analystOkay. Okay. INR 2,000. Okay. Okay. And sir, lastly, sir, in the iron ore fine sales, so do we expect the same trend? Let's say, would we be crossing 1 million tonne during this quarter? Or it would be like you say, [ 5 or 6 lakhs ]?
Amit Sen
executiveNo, actually, what we have actually sold till October, it's 11 lakh tonnes. That is 1 million tonnes now. We already sold 1 million tonnes of iron ore till October, April to October, of which 0.9 million tonnes have been sold from RMD and about 0.1 million tonne or 0.2 million tonnes actually have been sold from the Bhilai Mines. So 10.92 lakh tonnes or 1.09 million tonnes have already been sold.
Kamlesh Bagmar
analystOkay. But if you see our NSR, they have been much lower compared to what our peers have done. So like the company that have been reporting like roughly around INR 2,500 to INR 3,000 improvement quarter-over-quarter. I do admit that in last quarter, our long sale actually were much higher because of the higher component of rail. So what have been the reason, sir? Like you say, exports have been higher, but not that to an extent, because across the company the cost have been much higher.
Amit Sen
executiveActually, what is your question you're asking? Why our NSR didn't grow as much as it grew for the others?
Kamlesh Bagmar
analystYes. Yes.
Amit Sen
executiveI don't know. One could be because of the mix because between long and flat, there was a difference in growth. And in some of the products, actually, there has been a fall in NSR in Q2. For example, in case of TMT, the TMT NSR actually fell. So it's different for us. It was the not uniform increase in all the products. It has been increasing some products. For example, in HR, there's been an increase. In CR, there has been a very big increase. But there has been a decrease in TMT. There has been a decrease in structural. Long probably have come down a bit and the flats have gone up a bit. And because we have both the profile, so we will average those. And also, our export percentage in Q2 was about 16% of the total set. And the exports were -- the NSR of export was very low. In fact, the NSR of export in this quarter was much lower. It was how much? It's INR 28,300, INR 28,300 per tonne, which is about INR 2,000 less than what it was in Q2 of last year. So all these things put together, the balancing of between long and flat and also the high proportion of export in the total sales, that's probably hampering the overall NSR of sales if you compare SAIL as one company with, say the [indiscernible].
Operator
operatorSorry sir, we are not able to hear you.
Amit Sen
executiveThe other reason why we see the NSR of Q2 versus Q1, which as we correctly said in Q1, there was a big proportion of rails in the total amount. So that inflated the overall. But that is slightly misleading, no? Whereas in Q2, which is a normal quarter, the proportion of rails, it is actually around 10% of our total sales. So with that mix, this NSR actually is a real NSR. If you compare with Q1, the proportion of rail was very high, then the comparison gets a little distorted. That's why it's better to compare Q2 with Q2 rather than Q1 with Q2.
Operator
operatorWe'll move on to the next question that is from the line of Vishal Chandak from Emkay Global Financial Services.
Vishal Chandak
analystYes. Just wanted to know your thoughts on how you would look at the Nagarnar Steel Plant of NMDC. Any plans to take up that plant to run as an...
Amit Sen
executiveNo, no, no. No plans. No plans. Absolutely no. We are still trying to digest our borrowings. We have no plans to do anything other than that.
Vishal Chandak
analystJust from an operations perspective, do you plan to run that plant? Or you would not be interested in even just running the plant.
Amit Sen
executiveNo, no, that has already been earmarked for sales. And I believe after the government guideline, a PSU cannot bid for that. And that is being sold through that share purchase route. So no, we are not there. We are not there in the [indiscernible].
Vishal Chandak
analystOkay. My second question was with respect to your raw material costs. If you look at the raw material cost on a sequential basis has actually gone up despite coal costs coming down. So any thoughts on that? On a per tonne basis, it's just gone up.
Amit Sen
executiveYou are saying Q1 versus Q2?
Vishal Chandak
analystCorrect, sir.
Amit Sen
executiveOn a quarter basis?
Vishal Chandak
analystQuarterly basis.
Amit Sen
executiveCost has gone up in Q4. I'll do something. And I'll just examine that and come back to you.
Vishal Chandak
analystSure, sir. And lastly, sir, just if I may add just one question on the IISCO Burnpur plant. A couple of years ago, if you remember, after the last furnace was completely rebuilt, it's practically a new blast furnace that we have over there. It went -- it was got chilled. And then there was a large repair, which came up and then the plant restarted. So what are the reasons why are we still not able to bring the plant back to the normal rate of capacity? I believe it's more than 3 years now since we recommissioned a new blast furnace. And has there been any penalties imposed or costs recovered from the vendor on that front?
Amit Sen
executiveSee. First of all, the Burnpur blast furnace is a brand-new blast furnace. It was not rebuilt the blast furnace. And it's a very nice one. It was producing about 8,000 tonnes per day, but in almost every financial year, it seems to have some kind of a problem. This is actually the third time this blast furnace has gone down. So one, as you correctly said, it chilled. Had to be completely shut down, and once you shut down a blast furnace, it takes an enormous amount of time to bring it up. This time, it has not shut down. It has not chilled actually. But some, I think slag has got into the tuyere, and it is still operating. It is operating at about 5,000 tonnes per day, 5,500 tonnes per day. But this is a furnace that can make 8,000 plus, 8,200 tonnes per day or something. So there's, let's say, 3,000 tonnes shortfall every day for a plant, which has only a single blast furnace. So that is -- it's a constraint for the entire plant, because if you don't get hot metal, then if you have a rolling mill, what do you do?
Vishal Chandak
analystRight. Sir, is the coke rate very high right now?
Amit Sen
executiveIt's very high because they are not able to inject PCI. So they are consuming entirely coke. And the coke rate in -- the coal automatically for IISCO is [indiscernible].
Vishal Chandak
analystTechnically, can we say that the problem is that the ore -- burden is coming down on the furnace? It's not holding -- is it not holding in the furnace and that is the reason it's still coming down?
Amit Sen
executiveWhich one, the coke?
Vishal Chandak
analystNo, the iron ore burden in the furnace is not holding on. It's just coming down. And hence, we have to keep the furnace heated up through additional coal.
Amit Sen
executiveNo, actually, the problem started because of burden slip. So that's the -- I can't explain much more about that. The burden slip, it causes dashing. It cause the metal get into the tuyere and jam most of the tuyere. Now that is still in the tuyere and the air is traveling -- and it has traveled but, it's performing way below capacity. But because they're not able to inject PCI into the furnace or the coolers are not functioning, so they're not able to burn PCI. That is also why it is entirely now running on coke.
Vishal Chandak
analystOkay. And sir, any idea when -- by when we can have this furnace back to normal scenario?
Amit Sen
executiveSo initially, what they did, they had -- one is to operate it by POSCO, Korea. So they placed an order on POSCO, and they were supposed to come with their team. Some hundred people were supposed to come from Korea. But because of the corona virus and design of that, they are not going to come. So then they have again tendered out, and they'll be finalizing the tender shortly. But this new contractor who's an Indian-based contractor, he will need time to mobilize, go to the site, then do the repairs. So what IISCO is estimating it, the furnace will finally come up towards the end of February.
Vishal Chandak
analystEnd of?
Amit Sen
executiveFebruary.
Vishal Chandak
analystFebruary. Okay.
Amit Sen
executiveSo we have only got 1 full month of full capacity. But till February, it will be working at the 5,000, 5,500 per day.
Vishal Chandak
analystOkay. But is there any performance guarantee tax, et cetera, that we have paid to POSCO? Or we have retained that money?
Amit Sen
executiveNo. See, [indiscernible] with the project. It was an operational deficiency which caused it. [indiscernible] So it has nothing to do with the project LP or the project performance currently. It is not that. It is not the project with the problem.
Operator
operatorThe next question is from the line of Dhawal Doshi from Pinpoint Asset Management.
Dhawal Doshi
analystI'm sorry if this question is a bit -- but I think -- but just wanted some clarity on the steel realization, right? And the voice was not clear entirely. I would have missed it. Sir, you said INR 2,000. Is the September steel price higher than the average Q2, right?
Amit Sen
executiveYes.
Dhawal Doshi
analystAnd what of the [indiscernible] currently -- so if I have to take in the current blended realizations for the month of November that we're getting, how would that compare with Q2 average?
Amit Sen
executiveIf I take the actual NSR of October?
Dhawal Doshi
analystOctober, yes, okay.
Amit Sen
executiveIf I take the actual NSR of October and compare that with...
Dhawal Doshi
analystThe Q2 average.
Amit Sen
executiveWith Q2 average. Q2 average was 32,000. And -- or was that [indiscernible].
Dhawal Doshi
analystSo you mean to say there is no hike from September to October? Whereas in the markets, we heard that sale at high prices. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Amit Sen
executiveNo, no, you're not wrong. We have high prices in some products. And in some products, there actually been a degrowth, in fact, a reduction, in fact.
Dhawal Doshi
analystIn October?
Amit Sen
executiveIn steel plates and in TMT, there has been a reduction in prices. So overall, the increase is that INR 2,000 as compared to average of Q2. The prices September is INR 2,000 higher than the average of Q2. If October is also INR 2,000 higher than average of Q2, that means the NSR of October is equal to NSR of September broadly. Actually, that is true because it has increased in some products. It has come down in some other products. So weighted average probably remains the same.
Unknown Executive
executive[indiscernible]
Amit Sen
executiveIt was marginally higher.
Dhawal Doshi
analystOkay. And what's the outlook going ahead, let's say, November till the end of this year? Do we see more hikes coming to you as far as [ medium scale ] is concerned? I believe long should be looking much better now, going ahead versus flats. What's your view?
Amit Sen
executiveSo you're asking for the increase in NSR in the month of November [indiscernible].
Dhawal Doshi
analystSo going ahead, basically, November also we heard there is a hike. Do you see more potential hikes coming through?
Amit Sen
executiveActually, we expect the price on November I think some of the products higher than what it was in October. But in some products, we have to keep it on hold, for example plates; for example, CR. And we have to keep it on hold because that growth in NSR is not visible. But some products, we have increased. So we have to see at the end of the month, depending on our actual mix, what the weighted average NSR looks like as compared to October. And it has now increased across the board in all products. In some products, it has increased. In some products, it will remain static.
Dhawal Doshi
analystSir, my question was more of an outlook in March. Do you see, I think, staying firm or prices have peaked out? What's your view? Not specific to the month of November.
Amit Sen
executiveLet me -- everything is so balanced. It's very hard to say. But suppose we assume that what is here in November will even continue. I think that is what I said in reply to another question, that it's very hard to -- because the market is very volatile. Sometimes, things are going up. Sometime, prices are coming down. If we assume that this price is going to continue, the price that we have in, say, October, that price continues into November overall, going up, coming down or maybe marginal hike of INR 1,000 per tonne in November. And that then continues for the remaining 4 months, that also would be quite good.
Dhawal Doshi
analystSo what part of coking coal savings are yet to flow through as far as the numbers is concerned?
Amit Sen
executiveCoking coal savings.
Dhawal Doshi
analystYes.
Amit Sen
executiveWell, on average coal price [indiscernible] 2,400.
Dhawal Doshi
analystI'm sorry. I'm sorry, your voice is breaking.
Amit Sen
executive[indiscernible] In Q2, our average imported coal was 11,400. But when we say average, in Q2, it varies from $107 in July to $124 in September. Now in October and November, it is less. It is about $107 to $108. But I have to see the monthly average. So monthly average probably will be at this level or may come down slightly. So probably, my average for the quarter of Q3 will be close to the average for the quarter of Q2. Because in Q2, the prices were rising from $107 to $124. And in Q3, it is falling. The average to average, we have to see. [indiscernible]
Dhawal Doshi
analystSo basically, the benefit of coking coal current will be visible in Q4 and not in Q3?
Unknown Executive
executive[indiscernible]
Amit Sen
executiveOkay, okay, okay. Right, correct. So Q3 probably will be a part of Q2. And this benefit of coal will come because there's a 2-month lag between the date of shipment and the date of consumption. So the benefit of that probably will start coming from end of December or then from January, that is in Q4.
Operator
operatorThe next question is from the line of Rahul Jain from Systematix.
Rahul Jain
analystYes. Yes, sir. Yes. Sir, I did not check. So I was looking at the annual report, [indiscernible] is around INR 450 -- 450 tonnes. And for your competitors, it's around 350 and 300...
Operator
operatorSir, there's a lot of echo from your line.
Rahul Jain
analystOne second. I'll just -- sir, if I look at your annual report, you've given your coke rate. So it is around 457. And it has actually gone up from 453. Whereas your competitors are around 370 and even 316. So I'm wondering when can that come down meaningfully because that is a key component of your productivity, right?
Amit Sen
executiveActually, last year, we had a problem with PCI availability. We were not able to tie up the PCI coal. So this year, of course, we have -- there is no shortage of PCI supply. So this year, the coke rate will be much better than what it was last year because of the benefit of PCI. The only problem here is that the ISP consuming entire coke, not being able to inject this year. So in the total coke rate of SAIL, it probably will reduce EBITDA a bit. But had it -- this not happen, this year would have been far lower than what it was last year.
Rahul Jain
analystRight. Right. It was coming again because I still find your second quarter raw material cost to be very high. So just wondering -- I noticed improvement measures are visible so far. So trying to see probably in second half and year after, we can see some improvement on the cost side.
Amit Sen
executiveThe raw material part that we see, that would check that. But again, here, also that coke consumption by ISP also would [indiscernible] But I don't know. Okay. Okay. So there's been increase in royalty of iron ore because of the IBM prices even if coal price has gone up. Correct.
Rahul Jain
analystRight. Right. And sir, you have said you will do 18 million tonnes. You will be having that capacity. Should we assume that, that is the number you will be targeting next year?
Amit Sen
executiveNext year, yes, yes.
Rahul Jain
analystSo 18 million is the starting number that you would be -- and you have a comment around sale and other things, which are...
Amit Sen
executiveWhat I'm saying is 18 million tonnes design capacity of saleable steel, assuming that there are no constraints in the market. And we'll be able to produce and sell 18 million tonnes.
Rahul Jain
analystAnd sir, how much inventory would we be carrying right now, I mean, to the end of the quarter?
Amit Sen
executiveOn 30 September, it was around 1.1 million.
Operator
operatorLadies and gentlemen, we'll be taking the last question. That is from the line of Vishal Chandak from Emkay Global Financial Services.
Vishal Chandak
analystI just want to check. In the TMT, you mentioned that there is no hike in the month of October. But would there be a hike in the month of November?
Amit Sen
executiveIn November, just one second. In TMT you said, no?
Vishal Chandak
analystRight, sir.
Amit Sen
executiveTMT, we propose a hike, yes, in November.
Vishal Chandak
analystAnd how much would that be, sir?
Amit Sen
executiveAround INR 1,000.
Vishal Chandak
analystINR 1,000.
Amit Sen
executiveSo INR 1,000 is a minimum. Maybe later, we could get a better size on that [indiscernible]
Vishal Chandak
analystAnd I believe it's another INR 1,000 in the flat products then for the month of November.
Amit Sen
executiveOn the flats, in HR coil, we proposed -- one second, INR 1,000 in HR coil also, but no change in the CR.
Operator
operatorThank you. Ladies and gentlemen, that is the last question. I now hand the conference over to the management for the closing comments.
Amit Sen
executiveThank you very much. Those were good questions. Actually, we learn more for more questions than probably you learn from us. So [indiscernible] I mean, we are looking all efforts to improve our performance. Whatever we've lost in Q1 because of the pandemic, as I said, we are trying to recoup. Q2, actually, we are not happy with the performance. It should have been far better than what it actually is. But Q3, definitely, is going well. It's going pretty well. And we are confident that we'll end Q3, the 9 months, with a profit. And we'll end the year with, I'm sure, handsome profit. So the other things which also we are looking at, the construction activity picking up, the iron ore sales picking up. And if god willing, if we get the clearances for the sale of the subgrade, then that will be a bonanza. That will be a huge amount of income and cash that we can get from that, which will also help us in reducing our borrowing. Borrowings, as we have said, we are targeting to bring it down to INR 45,000 crores by 31st March without the help of iron ore fines and [indiscernible]. But if we get some money from these 2 sources also, it will anyways releases some ad hoc payments, maybe INR 1,000 crores, INR 2,000 crores and whatever money we get from sales of fines, fresh fines as well as subgrade, that will further bring down the bulk. So this is what we are hoping, and things are pretty good. We're optimistic that we'll be doing well, maybe well as till the end of third quarter, which we'll meet again for the next con call unless we have something to tell you.
Operator
operatorThank you. Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of DAM Capital Advisors Ltd., that concludes this conference call. Thank you for joining us, and you may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.
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