(Bloomberg) -- India’s JSW Steel Ltd. posted fourth-quarter profit that slumped 65% from a year earlier, following an increase in overall expenses and a decline in prices of the alloy, the company said.  

Net income for the three months ended March fell to 13 billion rupees ($156 million), the company said in a filing Friday, lagging Bloomberg estimates. 

Despite India’s booming demand for the alloy and a 3% annual production growth to 6.8 million tons in the quarter, the company was hit by a 6% drop in price, according to the statement.

India remains a net importer of the material, which represents “a challenge for the domestic steel industry,” JSW Steel said.

India’s substantial imports from China, Japan and South Korea “had a bearing on the domestic prices,” said A.S. Firoz, a former advisor to India’s steel ministry. “Moreover, the cost of raw materials didn’t decline at the same rate as the finished steel prices, impacting margins of steelmakers.”

Elaborating on its energy transition plans, JSW Steel said its board approved procuring 600 megawatts of hybrid renewable power along with 320 megawatt hours of battery storage at its Vijaynagar facility in southern India. The company is in the process of purchasing 958 megawatt of solar and wind power. 

The steelmaker said it also plans to raise 140 billion rupees via sale of bonds and shares, without giving details on how it intends to use the money. 

 

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