CDR cell allows 3 year moratorium on Haldia’s loan repayment re Project Supermax

04-May-10

Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd. (HPL) had taken a Rs 1,000 crore loan from banks and financial institutions for implementing its capacity expansion project, Project Supermax. A corporate debt-restructuring (CDR) cell, led by IDBI has reviewed the company’s financial performance. The CDR cell has arrived at a decision to allow the company a 3 year moratorium on its loan repayment linked to Project Supermax. The project is considered an integral to HPL’s capacity expansion plans and was set up at a capital outlay of Rs 1,300 crore. The plant was shut for nearly five months, mainly due to project Supermax and on account of fire that had made major damages to two furnaces of HPL’s naphtha cracker plant. After reporting losses of nearly Rs 140 crore in 2008-09, HPL’s losses for the current fiscal are estimated at Rs 150-crore. A senior HPL official said the company had clocked Rs 2,600-crore gross sales and a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 110 crore in the first half of FY10. “Post-expansion, the company has set a turnover target of Rs 10,500 crore and a net profit of Rs 400 crore by FY11.