Maintains 20 percent GP margin:

Piramal Glass sales up 46 percent to Rs. 2,936 million

Chairman Piramal Glass, Vijay Shah, said that the Company had reported a sales value of Rs 2,936 million as against last year’s sales of Rs 2,014 million, reflecting a growth of 46 percent for the year ended March 31, 2009.

“As against the profit before tax of Rs 49 million in the previous year, a loss of Rs 261 million has been reported during the year under review.

However, the company has succeeded in maintaining a 20 percent GP margin as against 22 percent of the previous year,” said Shah.

CEO and Executive Director Piramal Glass, Sanjay Tiwari said that the company has shown a record turnover growth of 46 percent, despite the prevailing discouraging global economic environment.

“It is indeed a very positive sign to note the Company’s healthy growth not only in the domestic market but also in the export market, where once again we have demonstrated our capability of going global by achieving an encouraging growth of over 110 percent in export sales as against that of the previous year, with total export sales increasing to around 15 percent of total revenue, as against the figure of 10 percent of the previous year”.

During the year under review, Piramal Glass exported a total volume of almost 7,000 tonnes, consisting of over 25 million bottles, to markets as diverse as India, Australia, Europe and South Africa.

“The product portfolio of our exports too has widened, with the company having made inroads into the food and beverages sectors during the year under review,” said Tiwari. The present portfolio for exports consists of liquor, beer, food and soft drinks in varying shades and sizes.

Shah said that this was the Company’s first full year of operation of its new plant at Horana.

This was a Greenfield Project and they had to face several hurdles during its implementation as well as during the first year of its operations.

“We were able to run at full capacity only after November 2008, yet despite this the Company is now on a very firm footing. The facility is now fully geared with all five lines in operation and is drawing on the full capacity of its furnace”. Two of these production lines also have a colouring facility enabling the manufacture of bottles of different colours, shapes and sizes, and is supported by the latest quality inspection machines, packing machines and glass laboratory equipment, which are comparable with that of any modern global infrastructure facility.

Shah said that the year under review had been an exceptional one from a global economic point of view as well.

The high fluctuation in energy rates had increased the cost of production drastically, with Gas prices going up by a further 5 percent, Furnace Oil prices increasing by 17 percent and Diesel by a monumental 40 percent.