Petronet LNG shares slip 3.5% ahead of Q3 results; all you need to know

Petronet LNG Ltd, India's biggest liquefied natural gas importer, reported a 4% rise in its second-quarter profit on higher capacity utilisation at its flagship Dahej import terminal in Gujarat.

Net profit came in at ₹848 crore in the July-September period—the second quarter of the current 2024-25 fiscal year—as compared to ₹818 crore earnings in the same period a year back. This, however, was lower than the record ₹1,142 crore profit in the preceding quarter.

Petronet CEO and Managing Director AK Singh said throughput at the Dahej terminal rose by 7% in the second quarter when compared with the year-ago period.

"During the quarter ended September 30, 2024 (current quarter), the Dahej terminal processed 225 trillion British thermal units (TBTU) of LNG as against 210 TBTU during the corresponding quarter ended September 30, 2023, and 248 TBTU during the previous quarter ended June 30, 2024," he told reporters on a media call.

The overall LNG volume processed by the company in the current quarter was 239 TBTU, up from 223 TBTU last year but lower than 262 TBTU in the preceding quarter.

During the half year of the financial year, the Dahej terminal processed the highest ever, 473 TBTU of LNG, as against 428 TBTU during the corresponding half year ended September 30, 2023.

The highest-ever overall LNG volume processed by the company in the first half of the year was 501 TBTU, as against the LNG volume processed in the corresponding half-year, which stood at 453 TBTU.

During September, the company reported a net profit of ₹1,989 crore as against ₹1,608 crore in the corresponding half year.

The company's board also approved an interim dividend of ₹7 per share.

"The robust financial performance of the current quarter and half-year was achieved due to efficiency in operations and higher capacity utilisation of the Dahej Terminal," Singh added.

According to a report by Outlook Business published in December 2024, natural gas has become an increasingly popular option for electricity generation in many countries because it emits less carbon dioxide and other pollutants than coal.

26.7% of electricity generation in the US—the world's largest natural gas supplier—happens using natural gas.

"In India, the growth in rising demand has to be supported by a gradual increase in offshore and onshore gas production to avoid the rising import bill," the article added.

Petronet LNG share price trend

Shares of the company have rallied 20% in the past 12 months.