Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) on Monday announced a 17.5% year-on-year drop in net profit to Rs. 5,563crore in the October-December quarter against Rs. 6,741 crore in the year-ago period, mainly due to a fall in crude oil output.
Profit in the third quarter of 2011-12 was
higher due to a Rs. 3,142 crore one-time exceptional income from cost recovery being allowed on royalty it paid on Cairn India's Rajasthan oil block, said Sudhir Vasudeva, chairman and managing director, ONGC.
Net sales in the third quarter of the current fiscal grew by 15.8% to Rs. 20,987 crore from Rs. 18,123 crore in the same period in the previous fiscal year.
ONGC's subsidy burden stood at Rs. 12,433 crore, down marginally from Rs. 12,536 crore in the year-ago period. ONGC shares the under-recovery burden (or losses incurred on sales of fuel below the cost price) of sister oil marketing companies by allowing discount in the prices of crude oil that it sells to the refineries.