The Business Bytes
TBB BUREAU
BHUBANESWAR, SEPT 30, 2021
Navratna CPSE National Aluminium Company Limited (Nalco) on Thursday announced final dividend of Re 1 per share i.e. 20 per cent on face value of Rs.5 each for the financial year ended 31 March 2021. With this, the total dividend pay-out for financial year 2020-21 comes to Rs. 644.27 crore, as against Rs. 279.84 crore declared and paid during FY2019-20.
Addressing the shareholders through the virtual platform at the 40th Annual General Meeting of the company today, Nalco Chairman-cum-Managing Director Sridhar Patra said that despite the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic with challenging business environment, the year 2020-21 for Nalco had been a year of accomplishments. “In spite of turbulent environment, coupled with volatile nature of LME prices and subdued demand for metal, we have made steady progress by focusing on the 5P’s – production, productivity, people, projects and profit. Although LME was at rock bottom in Q1, but planned initiatives, along with effective procurement strategies led to a landslide improvement in the bottom-line of the company,” said Patra.
With restrictions in manpower deployment and logistic constraints, NALCO’s workforce exhibited exemplary dedication and sense of commitment which helped the company in achieving extraordinary performance, he added.
Stating that Nalco has come a long way in the service of the Nation and powering India’s Mineral Security, Patra said, “The company has not only addressed the need for self-sufficiency in aluminium, but has also given the country a technological edge in producing this metal of the future at par with global standards.”
Sharing the future plans of the company, the Nalco CMD said that the focus is now on early commissioning of the expansion activities. “With steady progress on the ongoing expansion activities, we are optimistic for commissioning of the proposed one million tonnes per annum 5th Stream of Alumina Refinery expansion by 2023-24”, expressed Patra.
He further said the company is in the process of setting up of the fifth stream in its existing alumina refinery which will add one million tonnes per year (MTPY) to its existing normative production capacity of 2.1 MTPY (total capacity 3.1 MTPY), at a projected expenditure of Rs 6,435.90 crore at December 2018 price level.
“With steady progress on the ongoing expansion activities, we are optimistic for commissioning of the proposed one million tonnes per annum 5th Stream of Alumina Refinery expansion by 2023-24”, said Patra.
“This 5th stream expansion is based on improved Medium Pressure Digestion technology of Rio Tinto Alcan International Ltd (RTAIL) which is cost effective,” he added.
