Jindal Stainless said that the Corporate Debt Restructuring Empowered Group has approved rescheduling of payments of over INR 9,000 crore debt on August 24th 2012.
The company, which is already under the CDR program, was hit hard by 33% increase in its interest costs in last financial year and had registered a stand alone net loss of INR 103.90 crore in FY 2012.
JSL said in a filing to the BSE that "The rework package of the company under the CDR mechanism has been approved by the CDR Empowered Group on August 24th 2012 and the same has been communicated to the company by CDR Cell vide its letter dated September 18th 2012."
A senior official of Jindal Stainless Limited said that the approval was needed to maintain cash flow for its operations, particularly till its new 800,000 tonnes Odisha capacity begins production at optimum level.
He added that company's performance has been affected in recent times largely due to subdued demand, weakening of rupee and cheap imports of stainless steel from overseas market.
The official said that however, JSL is expecting to make profits after its new 800,000 tonnes capacity at Odisha starts running at optimum levels by June 2013.
In 2011-12, its debt-equity ratio increased to 5.17 from 4.04 in FY 2011, its financial results for the last fiscal showed. Besides, the company had a liquid cash of INR 164 crore as on March 2012 to run its operations.
JSL had commissioned 800,000 tonne per annum new plant at Odisha's Jajpur in 2011. Currently, the plant is producing at about 60% to 65% of its capacity.
The company, at present, has a total production capacity of about 1.8 million tonnes and has plans to increase it further to 2.5 million tonnes in a couple of years. To run its operations, the company requires about 800,000 to 900,000 tonnes of chrome ore and 1.2 million tonnes of coal per year.
Meanwhile, in a separate filing to the BSE, JSL said that some of its bond holders have converted 200 foreign currency convertible bonds of USD 5,000 each into 3,64,972 equity shares of INR 2 each.
It added that post conversion, company's paid up capital would increase from INR 38,03,25,150 to INR 38,10,55,094 divided into 19,05,27,547 equity shares of INR 2 each.
Source - PTI
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