Larsen & Toubro Limited (BOM:500510)
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Q3 20/21

Jan 25, 2021

Speaker 1

Thank you, Stanford. And good day to all of you, ladies and gentlemen. This is P. Ramakrishnan. I have with me my colleague, Harish Barai also, who has joined this call.

Firstly, a very warm welcome to all of you for the L and T Q3 9 months FY 'twenty one earnings call. The analyst presentation was uploaded on our website around an hour back. I hope you have had a chance to go through the numbers. This time around, instead of going through the entire presentation, I will give you a brief overview and after which we will proceed into question and answers. Before I summarize the performance A disclaimer, essentially, this presentation and the discussions what we will have in this call would contain certain forward looking statements concerning our business prospects and profitability, which are and would be subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, and the actual results could materially differ from those in such forward looking statements.

For the group, Q3 FY 'twenty one was a welcome departure from H1 of the current financial year as most of the financial parameters of the group are evidencing return to pre COVID levels. At an economic level, the pickup in high frequency economic indicators For India, especially considering manufacturing index or power generation statistics or GST collections or even supply or cargo movements, It augurs very well and it appears that the country's GDP will grow in H2 of the current financial year as compared to the contraction that we witnessed in the 1st part of FY 2021. In Q3 FY 2021, We do see a strong sequential recovery. We registered a strong growth in order inflows in Q3, 76% Y on Y and around 1 lakh 61 percent Q on Q on the back of Some very prestigious and high order wins, most notably in the infrastructure and the hydrocarbon segment. Consequent to such wins, our order book at INR 3,031,000 crores approximately is also at a record high.

Our revenues for the quarter Q3 of the current financial year have registered a sequential growth of 15%, largely aided by near normal labor availability and a functional supply chain. On a year on year basis, our Q3 revenues have marginally declined by 2%, primarily due to productivity challenges arranging out of stringent safety protocols at sites. Our PAT, profit after tax from continuing operations for Q3 FY 'twenty one has registered More than 100% quarter on quarter growth and 4% on a Y on Y basis. Our cash flow situation in the current quarter is again an extension of very good collections on the back of H1 FY 2021. A combination of enhanced borrowing programs at the Center and States along with the pickup in tax collections in Q3 has augured very well for us.

As an example or as a statistic, our drop collections for the group For the quarter, Q3 was around INR 32,000 crores, against which the parent collections attributed to around INR 18,000 crores, which is a large part of our core business. For the 9 months, our absolute levels of net working capital has shown a marginal improvement Around RMB 31,000 net, thanks to the steady current collections customer collections. Our entire operations for this 9 month period have been funded from customer collections, and we have not had to drop on the cash reserves on the balance sheet. Our net cash flow from operations for Q3 9 months of the current financial year are very robust. You can refer to the cash flow statement, which is there at the end of the presentation.

Finally, net working capital to sales ratios appear although high because of the fall in revenues, although it is not a guidance from our end, But we will endeavor to maintain the same levels of net working capital in March 'twenty one as they existed the previous financial March 2020. Having mentioned that, let me also state here that the ask rate for collections in Q4 would be higher given the likely ramp up of operations. Hopefully, a combination of the improvement in tax collections at the government level And the remaining program for Q4 should enable us to maintain our working capital at satisfactory levels. Coming to order inflows. As I said on the back of large domestic order veins in infrastructure and hydrocarbon, Our order inflows for 9 months stand at INR 1248,000,000,000, Marginally lower 3% compared to the 9 months of the previous year.

We see total bottoms at prospects pipeline of around INR 2.65 as of December for Q4 FY 2021, of which around INR 2,200,000,000,000 is domestic and the balance, international. Infrastructure prospects, both domestic and international, account for around INR2.7 trillion Out of this total prospect pipeline of INR2.65 1,000,000,000. It appears that the government has now turned to focus on new awards, which will boost economic recovery and generate further employment. The government is currently focusing on awards in key areas like metro RRTS HSR, high speed rail, roads and expressways, Renewables, water and as well as power transmission and distribution. Some comments on the order book.

As I said earlier, Out of a record order book at INR3311 billion as at December 31, The ratio of domestic to international in this order book is around 80.20. After domestic order book of INR 2637 1,000,000,000, The split of the order book is as follows: Central government projects, 12% state government, 34 PSU's 41% and Private 15%. In challenging times like this, A large proportion of the orders from public space mitigates credit risk. Suffice to state here, Out of this order book, almost around INR90 1,000,000,000 is multilateral funded. The overall group performance, financial parameters are covered in the presentation along with summary explanations for the variation.

I hope you have had a chance to go through the same. The two points which I would like to mention here is that the profit from discontinued operations, net of tax In Q3, is an aggregate of a additional consideration net of contractual adjustments against sale of the Electrical Automation business to Schneider, which happened in the month of August. We gains on divestment of our UK based E and A Electrical Automation segment, that is Sarovac Systems. With this, the L and T has completed the complete exit from the Electrical Automation business. Some comments on the segment performance before I move on to the final part on outlook.

First is infrastructure. Q3 order inflows in this segment surpassed cumulative order flows in H1 FY 2021. As you are aware, we secured some large prestigious domestic orders in this segment in Q3. As I mentioned earlier, We have a healthy prospect order pipeline for Q4 in the infrastructure segment, and we remain optimistic on the ordering outlook in this segment in the near term. Coming to revenues, this segment recorded a smart sequential growth of Revenue growth of 22% in current quarter Q3 on the back of workforce availability and supply chain normalization.

However, on a Y on Y basis, the Q3 growth declined 7%, largely due to 6 safety protocols to be followed at sites. Over through various automation initiatives and better workforce scheduling as well as work methods, Hopefully, going ahead, we will recover from the productivity and at the same time, maintain our safety protocols. As you are aware, margins in the infrastructure segment is a function of jobs mix and site productivity. As activity levels pick up, The margins will automatically improve as under recoveries would get eliminated or reduced. Having said, There could be some quarter on quarter volatility in margins depending on job mix.

The second segment, Power. Power has been a little muted in the 9 months of this financial year. There has been a lot of award deferments, largely on account of the pandemic. However, this segment is largely impacted from a revenue perspective because of the large opening order book And couple of quarters of our departments will not impact this segment from a revenue perspective. The revenue growth in Q3 9 months of the current financial year is largely due to the opening order book.

However, margins is subdued as major part of the execution is yet to cross the Margin recognition threshold. Heavy Engineering segment. This segment registered Reasonably robust order win in a challenging environment. And it is good to state here that around 60% of the order wins in Q3 of the Current financial year is from X Force. Better capacity utilization at workshops and the factories resulted Sequential revenue growth of 32% in the current Q3 and 1% growth on Y on Y basis.

The Q3 margin again is reflective of job mix. If you recall during Q2, the margins for this segment were depressed largely on account of a prudential provision made towards a one time settlement with an overseas client. Defense Engineering, multiple small orders replenished the order book. The recent policy governments of the government concerning this sector are very encouraging for the domestic industry. In fact, as we speak, around 28,000 crores of domestic projects have been cleared by the Defence Council.

We are fairly excited about the future outlook. However, implementation may happen over a course of time. The final stages of execution of a large order drives revenue in the current quarter, Q3 FY 'twenty one. The revenues in Q3 having registered A sharp growth of 34% on quarter on quarter basis and 2% Y on Y. Margins again are reflective of job mix and stage of execution.

Hydrocarbons, Hydrocarbons segment. Big domestic order wins in Q3 replenishes our order book. The improved activity levels at yards, at our fabrication yards drive revenues in this current quarter. The Q3 margin contributed by a very efficient job mix and execution. Coming to Development Projects segment.

This segment includes the power development business, which comprises of a 1400 megawatt power plant, thermal coal based power plant in Punjab and a 99 Megawatt Hydral Power Project. The Hydral Power Project has been fully commissioned in the current quarter, Q3 FY 'twenty one. And besides this Power Development business, it also includes the segment also includes the Hyderabad Metro operations. It is important to note that the roads and the transmission line concessions are housed in IDPL, L and T IDPL, And it is consolidated at PAT level under the equity method as because it is a joint venture. The revenues in this segment for Q3 is largely contributed by Nava Power, which is the thermal power plant in Punjab, which I stated earlier.

The decline in Q3 revenue is attributed to lower plant load factor in Nava, arising mainly because of lack of coal supply Due to the railroker agitation in Punjab, which affected the operations of the power gen of the plant for almost a month. The metro margins are impacted by operating expenditure because of under recovery due to low traffic in COVID times. The current traffic averaging around these 100,000 are at absolute statistic level. But during weekdays, it has seen Almost operating days or weekdays, it is around 1 lakh 25,000 to 1 lakh 30,000 ridership per day. Coming to IT and Technology Services segment.

This segment comprises of 3 listed entities, namely LTI, Mindtree and NTTS. This segment has YTD on a YTD basis, this segment has largely been unimpacted because of COVID, As they have quickly migrated to work from anywhere kind of model and with increasing of outsourcing of services, especially in the digital engineering space. Consequently, sequential as well as Y on Y revenues for this segment continues to grow. Margin improvements is aided by improved utilization, Better favorable onshoreoffshore mix and improved operational efficiency. The other segment comprises reality, Construction Mining Equipment, Rubber Processing Machinery, Industrial Walls and Smart World and Communications.

The strong revenue growth in is led by Reality, Smart World and Communications and Walls. The higher Q3 of the current year margin is primarily due to the sale of our commercial space by the Reality segment.

Speaker 2

Coming to the last

Speaker 1

one, Financial Services segment. Coming to the last one, Financial Services segment. The Q3 of the current financial year Revolve around significant disbursements in rural and intra, robust collections, improved net interest margin and maintenance of adequate liquidity on the balance sheet. The Q3 PAT degrowth is largely due to enhanced credit cost provisions. The business continues to pursue the strategy on retailization of its portfolio, a very prudent ALM And improving asset quality and increasing diversity of funding sources with the overarching aim of remaining in the top quartile of ROE.

Coming to the environment and outlook. This financial year can be best described as a tale of 2 halves. The first half witnessed lockdowns due to the spread of the COVID-nineteen virus, falling tax collections due to economic contraction, Partly offset by government fiscal and RPA monetary easing and the second half is about growth coming back As evidenced by various high frequency economic indicators, improved tax collections, start of the COVID-nineteen vaccination program and continued liquidity and fiscal support from the government and Reserve Bank of India. Reflecting on the 9 month performance of the current year, Our E and C performance has been fairly robust on order inflows and cash flows, primarily due to government and RBA proactiveness to create Ordering opportunities and adequate event and liquidity. Whereas on the revenue and margins, we were impacted due to lack of labor availability and supply chain bottlenecks in Q1 and in Q3 due to lower productivity arising out of strict safety protocols at the site level.

Although this year we have refrained from giving any sort of guidance on the E and C business, we will try and retrieve as much ground as possible In Q4 FY 'twenty one on the various financial parameters. Our services business have largely been unimpacted when I mean our IT and TS segment, they have been largely unimpacted due to COVID, and they will continue to pursue profitable growth opportunities. Once normalcy returns, we will pursue our divestments of the concessions portfolio and address the refinancing part of the Hyderabad Metro. And hopefully, I think that should get resolved in the passage of time. With the pandemic yet lingering and the after effects of that still continuing, the business pursuits need to factor Additional risks warranted to ensure responsible conduct towards the new emerging opportunities and growth prospects.

Against such a backdrop, the group will continue to focus with cautious optimism on pursuing large project wins, Smart execution of its reasonably large order book and continue to preserve liquidity and optimum use of capital and other resources. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for a patient hearing. We will now proceed to take

Speaker 2

Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin the question and answer session. The first question is from the line of Ranjit Sivaram from ICICI Securities. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Yes. Hi, sir. Good evening, and congrats on good margins and order intake given the overall environment. Sir, if you can just show some more clarity on that real estate transaction because that has been a good And if you can provide some more granularity on that, it will be helpful.

Speaker 1

So Ranjeet, as part of the reality business is a function of either leasing or outright sale of properties. And in every quarter, whenever there is a sale of Space, be it residential or commercial, you will see a bump up in revenue and margins in that quarter, but it's part of the business itself.

Speaker 3

Okay. So there is no one off in that Margins of Realty, Debt, what we should understand?

Speaker 1

As I said that When the real estate business, whenever there is a transfer of property in terms of be it residential or commercial, in that quarter, you will find A jump in revenues and consequently profitability. But in the specific response to your question, the impact of this would be around the range of 3.40 odd gross on our VAT level.

Speaker 3

Okay, sir. And sir, if you can throw some more Right. On the infrastructure margin, this quarter was better than the last two quarters. But on a sustainable basis, What kind of trend do you see in infrastructure? Because that was one segment where margins have been under pressure continuously For the last year also.

So how do you see that overall margin trajectory of infrastructure panning out given the mix of jobs that we have?

Speaker 1

So Ranjit, I think we have maintained in this particular year that we will not We will refrain from giving a revenue and a margin guidance. Having said this, if you see on quarter on quarter basis, The infrastructure margins have stabilized, I would say. This quarter, we have done around 6.2% As compared to the previous corresponding quarter of the previous year, which was roughly around 6.1%, we do have, I would say a more better order mix in terms of having secured some large orders in this segment. A combination of smart Product smart cost saving and better execution will hopefully improve the margins. But it is a complete, I would say a resultant of how the overall job mix across the quarters pans out.

And we do believe That quarter on quarter with almost near normalcy coming in, infrastructure revenues should hopefully go up. And to that Under recovery of overheads will happen and hopefully margins should go up. But as I said, margins in all the Entire core business is a function of execution and job mix and proportion of jobs going into the respective Valuation thresholds.

Speaker 3

Okay, sir. And so if I can ask one more like within the working capital, Which is that element where you are seeing major improvement? Because we see that the order intake has been a Huge pickup. So advances would have increased a lot. So we would have ideally expected a much more better improvement in the working capital.

So you said that Tethers or is it the payables that is still hurting us in the working capital front?

Speaker 1

Okay. So let me tell you that our actually net working capital, which is maintained at December as of even March 'twenty levels is largely because of a drop in the gross working capital, which is mainly due to improved collections from customers. Having said that, it is also important as a company, as we get collections from our customers, which has been quite robust in this COVID year, We have also ensured that our supply chain doesn't get affected. So to that extent, we have also been quite supportive of all our supply chain vendors And ensuring that they get paid so that they are in a position to ensure supplies are unaffected to our sites.

Speaker 3

Okay. And regarding the advances from these orders which we have received, wouldn't that have a support for the working capital or You said that we had to

Speaker 1

In Q3, one important advance which we secured was the advance of almost around INR 450 crores against the It's a high speed rail order.

Speaker 3

Okay, sir. Thanks, and I'll join for further questions. Thanks.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Mohit Kumar from Dhan Capital. Please go ahead.

Speaker 4

So congratulations on a very excellent quarter. So my first question on order inflow. We have announced order inflow of mere INR 630 1,000,000,000 Once the order inflow announced at the exchanges till date of INR 760,000,000,000 This is marked departure from the earlier quarters, Well, the announced order inflow was higher. Is this something that we have withheld for Q4? And secondly, is it possible To tell us how much what is the L1 order inflow?

How much worth of the projects where we are L1?

Speaker 1

I would not like to comment on the second question, Mohit, because just because in the domain, we may have been announced as L1. But as a company, we do take into order inflows only after the due process of getting a proper LOI or electro award is done. So I would not like to comment on that part. And as far as the first question is concerned, kindly note that when you are asking me about the number of December 'nineteen, vis a vis December 'twenty, it is quite possible that some announcements which have happened in the subsequent quarter could relate to orders for which the letter of awards was given in the previous quarter itself.

Speaker 4

Okay. Understood. And secondly on this, given the fact that the order inflow from the Middle East So international order inflow for the infrastructure and the other segment has been pretty slow. How do you see it now expanding out over next 12 to 18 months? Are we seeing more order inquiry, more tenders?

Do we Mohit, as we speak, our auto prospects, even as we

Speaker 1

Mohit, as we speak, our order prospects, even as I just now told, is largely from the domestic space, okay? As far as opportunities outside of India is concerned, we do see opportunities in the range of almost, I would say, 40,000 crore worth of prospects, but they are largely coming from areas like water, renewables, power transmission and distribution. We don't see any major prospects per se in the other segments where we cater to in the Middle East area.

Speaker 4

So asking about the prospect from the next from the timeline of around 12 to 18 months, Are you seeing any traction in Middle East, in hydrocarbon especially?

Speaker 1

Considering the fact that the crude prices Still continue to have, as per the forecast, the crude prices are expected to be, I would say, very moderate in the current calendar CY 'twenty one. So it would not be proper of us to really forecast as to what kind of increased opportunities may happen. So we do see, if you really ask me from a hydroparkers perspective, the areas where we see more traction happen is more on the mid and downstream And lastly, in the area of petrochemicals, maybe we would be in a better position to give a perspective on this segment from Middle East I mean, when we close the current financial year.

Speaker 4

And so last question, sir, how much cash were infused in L and T hydrocarbon in Q3?

Speaker 3

Sorry, L and T

Speaker 4

and Metro, Hyderabad Metro in Q3.

Speaker 1

In Hyderabad Metro, we have infused around INR 500 crores during the quarter.

Speaker 4

And is there any plan to increase this infusion further in Q4?

Speaker 1

So if you recall, In the September call, when we had the earnings call while we disclosed our H1 results, we clearly communicated that we have set aside have some of around INR 2,000 crores towards funding into Hyderabad Metro. And I guess out of that, We have advanced INR 500 crores in Q3. So based on the requirements, we will continue to From the metro operations, still we reach this threshold. And hopefully, by then, we should be in a better position to have refinanced or restructured a major part of the balance sheet of this particular operation.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Puneet Gulati from HSBC. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Yes. Hi. Good evening and thanks for the opportunity and congratulations on great numbers. My question relates to the work that was done in Q1 and Q2. And obviously, there were difficulties in our delays in work.

Is there any discussion with your customers about how that loss can be That's been set aside.

Speaker 1

You're referring to the Q1 and Q2 claims regarding the COVID interruptions? Yes. Okay. So it is, as you are aware that most of our customers are all repeat customers, okay? And we are not, instead of pursuing through protracted and negotiations, We would rather adopt a conciliation approach and ensure that we are able to manage a sort of a win win situation.

And we do expect and as you know that most of these cases where our customers are government parties and immediate settlements may not be possible. Hopefully, in the next 3 to 4 quarters, we should expect some of these claims towards COVID, which we have already expensed out in the P and L, should materialize, but it is too early for us to comment a number on that.

Speaker 3

Yes. But there is a positive movement in that direction?

Speaker 1

100%, yes. But as I said, we are, as we are pursuing all because we are also executing the project, Not only one project, but multiple projects with the same client. So we have to ensure that we are able to create, as I said, Some sort of a win win situation. The clients accept the fact that we have incurred expenses. They are completely aware of it.

But as you know that The government process on such clearances does take some time. Hopefully, I think in the next 3 to 4 quarters, we should achieve our business progress.

Speaker 3

Okay. That's great. My second question relates to your current investments, cash and equivalents. That number seems to be Sitting quite high in last quarter as well and continue to remain high at $450,000,000,000 Any thoughts on why you're keeping so much of cash?

Speaker 1

We did talk about, again in H1, we see the total around INR 45,000 crores, which talked as surplus investments, okay? Out of that, our financial services has around INR 7,000 crores, okay? And then our IT and TS subsidiaries, they have another around 7,000 odd crores, okay? And the rest is lying in the core business, which is largely in the parent. And as I talked about, And we have also discussed after how we plan to utilize when we closed H1 results.

Having said some amounts for Hyderabad Metro for infusion as part of our share into L and T Finance and also used some of the cash proceeds to retire the debt. As we speak, in month of Q3 itself, we have reduced debt around almost INR 5,000 crores. So a combination of Subscription to defined commitments like Hyderabad Metro, L and D Finance rights issue and also reduction of debt hopefully should bring down Our overall investable surplus as we close the financial year.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Sumit Kishore from Access Capital. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Good evening, Pierre. You had mentioned that the other prospect base For H2 at the end of September quarter, it was about INR6,000,000,000,000. And that figure has now come down to about INR2,600,000,000,000. And we understood that the high speed rail contracts are not part of the prospect base. So would you say that there has been certain slippage of order prospects Sir, that we have seen the next financial year.

Speaker 1

So it is like this that when we gave the prospects As of September, that was for the balance 6 months of the current financial year. And when I gave a number of $2,650,000,000,000 for, It is largely what we think is the canvas we have in terms of what orders would likely come up for tendering or bid or getting awarded. A combination, as you see the number of $6,000,000,000,000 in September, some of that could have been deferred to the subsequent financial year or the next financial year. And There is a good possibility that some of those got, could have tendered and maybe there are others who would have bought those projects. So it is a number which is dynamic.

And as I said in the early part of my call, that this is a completely bottoms up approach Starting from each and every BU under each every segment, and that is how it is done. So 2.65 is a number which we are working on, We should see some awards happening or tenders happening and crystallizing and hopefully in our favor, and that is only for Q4 of the current financial year.

Speaker 2

Sure.

Speaker 3

Could you also talk about the impact of commodity prices on margins, So especially as the commodity prices have gone up and qualitatively how you're looking at the impact on business in 3Q and going forward?

Speaker 1

See, the impact of, I would say, the steel price is in the range of around 9% and 6% not CIMID, which are the 2 important commodities we have in terms of procurements. So that has happened, whatever Those prices have happened. That has been factored while we have reported the margins. Having said this, we do believe that These prices are unsustainable. And as you know, the government itself has made out some public pronouncements that This is completely out of whack, and we do expect that the prices to stabilize in the near term.

And as you are aware, 50% of our contracts are on cost plus basis. So wherever because of this inflation buffers, We'll ensure that some part of this gets compensated in the future.

Speaker 3

Sure. And finally, on productivity levels, Where do you see them now? And are we back to when do we get back to normal? What is the last vestige Of impact of productivity on business, core business.

Speaker 1

Okay. So The productivity challenges, especially at site level, is most visible in the infrastructure segment. And as I stated that, that continued to have some impact in Q3. But as you see from the numbers, there has been a vast improvement in terms of The overall progress of execution, what we have achieved and that is reflective in the numbers for Q3. We do expect That with the caveat that this pandemic, there is no relapse or no resurgence again.

The productivity levels only to improve. And hopefully, with the vaccination efforts, which should hopefully cover a large part of the population in the next two quarters, We do expect that the productivity should come back to normalized, but it will be difficult for us to say whether it will happen in Q4 or Q1 of the next

Speaker 2

here.

Speaker 3

Sure. Thank you and wish you all the best.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Ankur Sharma from HDFC Life Insurance. Please go ahead.

Speaker 4

Yes. Hi, sir. Good evening and thanks for your time. A couple of questions. One, when you look at the competition across your infra segment, hydrocarbons, Both really won sizable orders in Q3.

Would you want to believe that competition has also gone down In terms of the number of players participating, you said that we can call a little more aggressive In terms of winning order?

Speaker 1

Okay. So first thing, let me tell you that When we bid for any tender or any project, the company has and continues to review each project on a stand alone basis. A complete reassessment of that project happens in terms of pricing and other technical conditions. So I don't think we have compromised in any form to get projects where margins are significantly or severely compromised. Having said this, it is also important to note that From an India perspective, I do believe that we are reasonably well placed in terms of our ability to Contract large orders, which has a lot of complexity, be it on engineering, on execution.

To that extent, I do believe that we have an edge over the competition. But as you are aware that there are various projects which have been tendered out in Q3, where we have not been placed in L1. So it's a combination of, I would say, our ability or technical complexity being more or the size being more. We do have the competency in both in financial and engineering part to bid successfully for these projects. So that's the way I will probably answer to your question.

Speaker 4

But in your view, you don't believe that the number of players Participating would have also gone down meaningfully. And therefore, our win rates are so much better.

Speaker 1

If I have to Give us a statistic now for any job which is between, say, INR 500 crores to INR 1,000 crores. We do witness a big competition of almost 8 to 10 parties. But the moment it comes to very large jobs, as I say, a large job maybe around INR 2,000 to INR 2,005 crores above, Then depending on the sector which we compete, the list comes down, maybe around 4 or 5. And there, the technical evaluation is one of the very important criteria before the client actually goes into the price bid purposes.

Speaker 4

Okay. That's good to know. So secondly, on the hydrocarbon margins during this quarter, You got the 12% odd number. Are there any claims or any provision write back sitting over there? Or is it just a function of Execution of better margin projects?

Speaker 1

In this quarter, Q3, it is primarily on account of efficient execution.

Speaker 4

Okay, wonderful. Okay. Thirdly, sir, on the defense pipeline, so in your comments, you did talk about these 28,000 Not orders, but at least the approvals by the Defense Council. So I'm just wondering How much are we left with the Wadhara order? And any update on the follow on on that?

Because I think there were some talks on getting some more of the Wadhara order

Speaker 1

Okay. What I mentioned during the early part of the call was the government coming out through their counsel saying that almost INR 28,000 crores of opportunities will be put onto the domestic bid.

Speaker 2

And that

Speaker 1

PPE is a very, very positive development. But as you are aware, the ordering in defense usually is very Patchy and sketchy, but when it comes, it usually comes with a large order value. So as we speak now, Roughly around, I would say, INR 3,500 crores are the prospects which we are pursuing, and we do believe that we are quite well placed to take care of these opportunities. And this number, what I said is for the current quarter.

Speaker 4

And on the Vadja Danson, are we over or is there some still less

Speaker 1

Of the 100 supplies, we have almost delivered till now 91. And it was up to in Q3, we did 13. And prior to that was around totally around 87 has been delivered.

Speaker 4

Fair. Okay. And just one last one from my side, sir. On the debt levels on the balance sheet, So when I look at the numbers you've given, right, I believe that 33,000 which relates to the others On your balance sheet in the presentation would be for, largely the standalone debt, which I believe historically used to be in that 10,000, 12, So given the fact that we've done a brilliant job on the working capital side, we obviously have Limited infusions into our subsidiaries, if any. So when do we see these debt levels come back to normalized levels?

Speaker 1

So as you are aware that prior to the in the Q1 of this financial year, as a preemptive measure, the parent We took into a market borrowing of almost INR 12,000 crores. And that's one of the main reasons where the debt level shot up. And after the EIC divestments, once we have bought the proceeds, we have already started pruning the debt levels. And hopefully, in the times to come, the next 2 to 3 quarters, we do expect that the standalone debt levels to come down from where it is today. Setting aside wherever there is no possibility of retirement prior to its maturity, otherwise, we don't expect Any sort of additional incremental debt is absolutely ruled out to be at the parent level.

We will pursue opportunities As and when debt can be redeemed as early as possible and bring down. Today, our net debt to equity ratio at the parent level is around 0.1. So the expectation is we will probably post March, it should become almost negligible.

Speaker 4

Perfect. Okay. All right. Great. Thank you so much and best of luck.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Renu Bate from IIFL. Please go ahead.

Speaker 5

Yes. Hi. Good evening, sir. A few questions from my side. First, on the execution side, I remember that when we spoke last in November, December, the broad expectations were that We're still running lower than last year's utilization levels and probably somewhere by Jan also we were expecting to come back to previous year's level.

And your comments, which mentioned that it's unsure whether during 4Q or by the end of 4Q, you would be back to previous level. So does that mean that the overall ramp up, which you were anticipating a couple of months back, the or the level of productivity improvement has been relatively softer than what we anticipated? And larger projects will take time to scale up in terms of revenues

Speaker 3

for the core Intra portfolio?

Speaker 1

Okay. So Renu, it is like this that as you observe in all the segments, on a quarter on quarter basis, our revenues have actually gone up. And that's why at an overall level, we are talking 15%. But if you go segment wise as well, that the improvement in revenue is largely because of, I would say more larger execution given the fact that our mobilization at site levels have improved. So Q4, as I said, Given the run

Speaker 5

rate has been Sequentially, usually 2Q is a softer quarter from execution perspective, and it was also impacted by COVID. So anyway, CQ always is higher than 2Q in terms of execution. So essentially, you're trying to assess that to come back to normalized levels. Even if you look at Feb March, as in are we seeing inherent bottlenecks to continue at sites which might delay this?

Speaker 1

See, as I said earlier, as far as supply chain is concerned, any supplies which are relating movements within the country, The bottleneck seems to have largely been taken out. There are still some restrictions as far as imports or cross border transactions are concerned. We do think but that also has significantly improved. We do expect that Q4 as far as infrastructure segment and other E and C segments are concerned that there are no further restrictions from a supply perspective. But as I said earlier, that the effects of the COVID situation is still, Although it has vastly improved as we speak for the Q3 as compared to what it was in the situation in Q2, but it would be conservative and prudent of us Not to specifically target a number, and that's the reason that we are not in a we are not refrained from giving any sort of revenue guidance As far as this year is concerned, but one comforting factor is that as we speak, the workforce is almost at 100% of the requirements of almost 265,000 people across the 900 odd sites we have in this country.

And we do expect that this will enable us to Demonstrate better growth prospects in Q4. And the target is to ensure that whether we will be able to manage the Q4 of previous levels. In fact, we need to do No, far more than that.

Speaker 5

The base is lower for last year, I think.

Speaker 1

Yes. So we will try our level best, but I would request that I will not be in a position to provide you a guidance as to how Q4 will actually plan to be. The only thing is we do see that the return to normalcy as we speak into Q4 as well. Sure.

Speaker 5

The second question is, if you look at the standalone financials and that is also partially reflected in the consult financials, There's a sharp jump in other income. So any particular drivers for the sharp rise on a sequential basis As well, are there any one offs, either dividend or otherwise, if you can highlight that?

Speaker 1

So Renault, the other income in the standalone financials is Mainly on account of higher investable surplus, as you are aware, the EIC divestment proceeds. And I would attribute far more better treasury management, which has happened that has enabled us to have a reasonably large other income in the group results for this quarter. Sure.

Speaker 5

So can you also share the headline on PBT PAT numbers for Hyderabad Metro as well, especially in terms of for the quarter or 9 months.

Speaker 1

Okay. So I will put across like this. The revenues For Hyderabad Metro for Q3 was in the order of around INR 50 crores, out of which 30 odd crores arises out of passenger ridership. The operating expense of the Hyderabad Motor as it stands now is roughly around INR 50 crores to INR 60 crores. And the depreciation charge is in the range of 75 odd crores and interest for each quarterly is around in the nature of 3.65 odd crores.

So I've given you a rough estimate of the entire operations of HMRL.

Speaker 5

Okay. Thank you for that clarification, sir. And lastly, would it be possible for you, as you did mention that your inflationary, both steel cement have had 9% and 6% impact, And part of this was also seen in 3Q Financials. Would it be possible for you to broadly quantify in terms of basis Point, the impact on the margins because of these supernormal rise in commodities that we have seen on a sequential basis?

Speaker 1

So, Renu, okay, it's a very good question you have, but my first answer is that I don't have the ready answer to Answer to your question. The only thing I can articulate is to the extent of jobs where we don't have a cost pass through, To that extent, whatever procurements have happened at these inflated prices have been obviously reflected into the margins that has got reported.

Speaker 5

Okay. Got it. Thank you so much, sir, and all the best. Thank you.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Venugopal Gharik from Bernstein. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Hi. Thanks a lot for the opportunity. Just a few small questions. Firstly, on the real estate side of things, there seemed to be some Optimism brewing in the market. I just wanted to understand 2 things.

One is, is this reflecting in any way positivity for you in terms of Sales in your existing projects, and is that triggering any potential new launches that you could share? And secondly, at this juncture in the order backlog, What is the probably the exposure you have to real estate construction for others more in terms of flexible residential side? And Is there any faster movement happening out there? Could this be another area of positive strength?

Speaker 1

So Venugopal, I guess, you have asked me 2 questions. 1 is on our reality business and the other one is In our contracting business, if I have understood you right, correct? That's correct.

Speaker 3

It's just 2 distinct questions, yes.

Speaker 1

Yes. So coming to if I say about reality business, the total number of units What we have as an overall plan as far as whatever developments we are doing across the country, the number of residential units, if I sum it up at around 5,006 Sundar. Against that, around 2,600 have already been sold, which means we have already booked the revenue, okay? Sold and transferred. Then balance, dollars 3,000 again, order of magnitude around $1900,000,000 has been contracted to be sold.

So that means as and when you hand we hand over, we will approve the revenue. And we have an unsold inventory of around 1100 residential units. But our response to the second phase in our Navi Mumbai property and also Phase 2 or 3 in our Bangalore property has been quite favorable. And we do expect there has been, I would say, in the Q3, The residential real estate in terms of especially the mid ticket, not the elite or the high end stuff, But more on the midsize, that is the classic 2 BHK, 3 BHK segment, has seen an uptick. And we do believe that it will continue to be favorable in the next 2 or 3 quarters.

Coming to the other part of the business as far as Opportunities in real estate are concerned. We do see mass housing opportunities in a more pronounced form And other complex space projects like hospitals, data centers and so on. As far as hospitals are concerned, We have seen some orders coming from state owned operations setting up hospitals. So we do expect A large uptick onto this area, especially on the health sector, on the data centers or data I hope I have answered

Speaker 3

Sorry, I missed out on In terms of the project that you have, what is the broad exposure today in the order book for the real estate in terms of quantum?

Speaker 1

So in the real estate space, our overall exposure is in the range of, I would say, around INR 45,000 crores. And most of them are, a large part of them are under execution. We don't have any major, I would say, Major, I would say, nonmoving order barring for maybe the Navi Mumbai Airport, That is non moving, but otherwise, a major part of this entire real estate part is a moving order book, I would say executionable order book as we speak.

Speaker 3

Okay. Got it. My second very quick question is, I just want to understand this that There seems to be a fairly good acceleration in the market in terms of order inflows. I also wanted to know that At the same time, is there any quicker case of, let's say, site access that has been given to you for the orders that have been awarded? Or is it like the usual time line?

So just wanted to see how quick is the government trying to push things? Is it just about announcing orders and selecting the Vendor or is it more also about on the ground where things are moving faster?

Speaker 1

Okay. So most of the orders that we have secured in the Current year for 9 months are all orders where a large part of the financing has been secured, number 1. And number 2 is, especially the large projects, whatever we have secured, I would say high speed rail and all, our understanding is There are no significant right of way restrictions in terms of land or site availability.

Speaker 2

The The next question is from the line of Apoorva Bahadur from Jefferies. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Hi, sir. Thank you for the opportunity. So just wanted to understand, you gave a pipeline of 2.65 k,000,000 for 4Q, of which 2,200,000,000 was domestic. So if you could share the same number for last year, if that Possible. And also how much is the infapiten and SRA list that number?

Speaker 1

So last year, which means you are referring to December 'nineteen quarter, right?

Speaker 3

Yes, sir.

Speaker 1

So that was in the range of around INR 2,090,000 odd crores total, Okay, order prospects for Q4 of FY 'twenty.

Speaker 3

Got it. Got it.

Speaker 1

And I don't have a sorry, I don't have a breakup of that in infrastructure right now.

Speaker 3

Okay. So for this year, what's the infrastructure fee? I mean, 2.7,000,000?

Speaker 1

2. Infrastructure is around 80%, 2,020,000 odd crores.

Speaker 3

Okay. Got it. So secondly, I think you mentioned on the Hyderabad Metro Refinance, so that is being pursued, but closure is probably Some time away once the normalcy resumes. And so how

Speaker 1

far do you see it? See, discussions are progressing with the, all the other stakeholders, especially the government and also our lenders. As I stated as we stated in the September call, Given the size of the project and the complexity, it would be it would take some time. Our talks have been with all the stakeholders as we have progressed during Q3 has been positive. But I do think that it could take some time before we can come to a clear solution to this.

But I do believe hopefully by March 21 or maybe Q1 of the next financial year, we should see Substantive progress in terms of how we have progressed on the entire refinancing of this particular project.

Speaker 3

Okay. Got it, sir. Sir, if I may just ask one more question, and that is, could you share these slow moving orders in the order book, Your number?

Speaker 1

I will tell you that as far as the order book of 3,031,000 is concerned, The amount of orders which are what we call as slow moving is minuscule and negligible.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Sujit Jain from ASK Investment Managers. Please go ahead.

Speaker 6

Our compliments on good set of numbers, PR and team. Few details, if you can just note them down. The net working capital for the core business That is standalone plus hydrocarbons. The ROE ex of the E and A sale, We had spoken about Uttarakal Hydro Power PPA being signed, any progress there, progress on exit from Nabra. If you can give me Hyderabad Metro's absolute debt and equity numbers.

And from the numbers of the P and L that you just In Hyderabad Metro, which means that and correct me if we are wrong on this is INR 3.75 crores of quarterly Cajit 1. Yes, that's about it. Thanks.

Speaker 1

Okay. So you asked me almost 4, 5 questions. So let me put it As far as cash operating expense of Hyderabad Metro is concerned, I talked about interest at 365 And maybe a shortfall in revenue vis a vis OpEx, maybe around 10%. So number of 375 is what you can consider the current levels of ridership, okay? Now coming to Tranchal, the Heidelberg project has been fully commissioned.

We are discussing with the state government to IFO long term PPA. We have not done it as of December. But since the plant is commissioned, we are started selling power through the merchant power, short term PPAs, and that's how the operations of the company has started. As far as sale of Nabah Power is concerned, We are pursuing, but we have not yet sort of concluded in any definitive form In terms of identifying a buyer and coming out with a proper sale agreement, so that I guess it should take some more time Because today, currently, thermal coke generation is not in the best of times in terms of valuation perspective, but We are following up very, very closely to achieve the desired result of exiting Nava Power and hopefully after some time even Uttanjan as well, has a clear strategy in terms of moving out of the divesting the assets in the Power Development business. The core business working capital is roughly in the range of, I would say, about INR 35,000 crores, around INR 22,000 odd crores.

And if I have to take out the EIC gain from the PAT of the current year, then the return on equity would be around 10.3%.

Speaker 6

As Ramakrishnan, debt equity absolute numbers?

Speaker 1

Debt would be in the range of 14,000 odd crores and equity would be around INR2500 crores.

Speaker 6

The margins, EBITDA margins that you report in the slides, Segment wise, these are core operating margins without apportioned other income, right?

Speaker 2

Yes.

Speaker 1

Whatever other income is reflected is reflected in the corporate segment.

Speaker 6

Okay. And one last question is on the sense of at the PAC level, because you give corporate separately, IT business will be contributing to how much In LNG today, at the PAT level.

Speaker 1

I think that is mentioned at the last part of our analyst presentation. One second.

Speaker 6

Which is what I was referring to. But there is a large corporate item, so it is difficult to figure out post EBIT from Mr. Portavitha.

Speaker 1

So let me summarize that for you. If you see that one second. Yes. Slide number 29, right? Yes.

Okay. So we have IT and TSS, the PAT that flows directly from those companies, okay? Similarly, Financial Services also flows Lastly from there are no adjustments at the L and T consolidation, largely coming from the consolidation of L and T Finance Holdings Group, okay? And Development Projects is again a combination of Hyderabad Metro and Nava, that is our Power Development business. So the rest of what we call as a core business And that you see it as in the first column as excluding services and whereas the interest and the tax part is residing in corporate.

Speaker 6

Okay. Okay. I will take the offline maybe. Thanks.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Ashish Shah from Santen Broking. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Yes. Thank you for the opportunity. So you did say that about 50% of the contracts have some sort of a price variation clause. Were you referring to the domestic order book or the overall order book?

Speaker 7

Overall. Okay.

Speaker 3

Of the overall order book, about 50%. So that would include some international orders also, which have the price variation because our general understanding was that international orders are fixed price contracts. That's why I'm asking this.

Speaker 1

Yes, yes. So there when I talk about 50% fixed price contract is comprising the international order book as well. But in international orders, a large quarter of show the orders is almost fixed price contracts. But there are certain international orders where we have especially commodity price variations, but that proportion is less as you compare it to the Mystic order book.

Speaker 3

Sure. So it will be a small proportion there. Sir, I just want to ask, I mean, it's not about this one particular bid as such, but There is one bid for this tunneling contract where we were below the authority cost. I understand you did say that you had certain Competency, a certain edge against the competitors and in complex projects. But what would be the sort of a thought process or rational In a bid which is below the authority cost to say, I mean, what is that goes into that bid?

What kind of savings we think we can manage in such business? And I'm not asking specifics about this one contract, but in general, whenever if that situation happens, If you can just talk a bit about it.

Speaker 1

See, you are taking up a one off situation where possibly maybe what we quoted is below the what the client's overall cost parameters is. But as I said earlier during the call, that each and every project is evaluated on a stand alone basis from a pricing and engineering perspective. And when we build up the cost estimate, that is based on Whatever course and likely procurement prices we will have for either the materials or the various machinery that we need to procure for executing our as part of the overall supply order. So, but there have been lot of cases and most of the cases, Some of these estimates could be dated. And what we have quoted is actually many a time more than what is the customer's own estimate.

So it will not be proper of us to conclude that way that if we have bid at a lower than what the client is estimating, is that something Going wrong or in terms of our pricing, as I said, each and every bit is taken into account, the pricing is done based on its own Merits in terms of both technical and commercial basis.

Speaker 3

Sure. So just coming back on the margin part, you did say that the Q3 margins are reflective of the increase that you've seen in steel and cement. So Is there I mean, from perspective of cost to completion estimate, would we expect I mean, do you think that we can anticipate any negative surprise In Q4, from a cost to completion point of view where we assess that probably because of the input prices going up, our Margins need to be marked down or you think that, that has been corrected, done as we see the Q3 result and There is no cost to completion assessment, revision need to be done in Q4.

Speaker 1

Ashish, see, in terms of when we do projects business, every quarter when we report revenues and margins, It is just not the progress of the job as far that quarter is concerned. We also have to reevaluate the overall cost to complete the job. And based on that, the site progress or the project progress and the margin is determined, okay? So while we have closed the books for December, it does factor into account the overall cost to complete the job. And that will as well factor any changes into the price parameters for the remaining portion of the job.

So having said this, that in terms of whether we do see any sort of one offs coming in Q4, it would not be proper of me to comment at this juncture Because one off elements do come as a surprise based on the progress of job in a particular quarter when we are proceeding on a particular project. And then in this next quarter, we do see when we go into the next phase of the project, we could have some, I would say, geological or site level surprises either way, positive or negative. So based on that, we need to reassess and recompute the margins and the revenue as the project progresses.

Speaker 3

Sure, sir. I appreciate that. Only thing that I wanted to check is that the increase which we have seen up to 31st December in the steel cement prices or let's say diesel prices, Whether that has been accounted in the numbers as far as the December quarter is concerned from a cost to completion of the cost responder. That's all what I Of course, no surprises can come. Yes.

Speaker 1

I did refer that when we take the cost for the quarter, that also is blended into cost for the yes, So portion which is to be completed. But that is all will be taken at contracted rates. And if orders have not been placed for Those materials where we see a price increase, that also gets inbuilt into the cost to complete.

Speaker 3

Got it, sir. Very clear. Thank you very much for your time, sir. Thank you.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Parakshatkantal from HDFC Securities. Please go ahead.

Speaker 7

Hi, P. R. Good evening, sir. Congratulations on good set of numbers. So my question was, you did mention about the Madhavas Metro refinancing maybe in couple of quarters' time, first half of next year.

We are incurring almost INR 500 crores of cash bond. So you did mention that. So And the debt of INR 14,000 about INR 14.50 crores is interest cost up to about 10%. So what is your stance on if you can give some sense on what could be after the refinancing, what could The interest cost, how much can it come down and whether we'll be able to achieve breakeven levels wherein there won't be any equity requirement to be Anish or fault to be funded from the LNG Bharat.

Speaker 1

So, Parikshit, there are two parts to your question. One is The metro traffic, which is averaging out to roughly around 100,000 ridership on a monthly average basis. And during the weekday, it touches around $125,000,000 to $130,000,000 per day. I think the first threshold of What we call as a satisfactory operation in terms of metro ridership, that would be a number what we have already seen In last year of around 300,000 to 400,000 ridership. I guess from a business perspective, that's the first threshold which we need to witness.

And hopefully, with all the vaccination being successful and Most of the companies in Hyderabad telling their employees to resume work from office because a major part of the metro network Also covers the IT intensive zones. I mean, most of the IT companies still that work from home continues. To that extent, that Rafiq is affected. But the target to what we believe is something which is which we believe is coming to A number which is enables us to show a profit on as far as operating cost is concerned, that should be in the range of 300,000 to 400 1,000 per day. So I guess maybe it will take some more time.

The second part, since the project has, I would say a large outlay in terms of the overall project value, and there is a significant amount of equity and debt. We do expect that it requires, I would say, a combined efforts of the concessionaire, That is the Telangana government, the lenders and L and T. So such kind of discussions, we don't expect to get closed out in 1 or 2 quarters. So but as I said earlier that we have achieved some, I would say, positive progress, but not yet conclusive. We do expect, hopefully, by March or next quarter, we should witness some progress on the refinancing part.

But it is still too early days for us to commit any sort of a clear path ahead. Having said this, one of the reasons we have set aside INR 2,000 crores for Hyderabad Metro is precisely to ensure that Pending the restructuring of the overall balance sheet, at least it is very important for L and T as a responsible investor, as a responsible developer to demonstrate to the stakeholders that despite the company's operations being affected, we still are to reserve some money to that. Hopefully, I guess, with the money having set aside, we do expect some amount of resolution soon. But I guess time is of essence. And hopefully, in the next 1 or 2 quarters, I should be in a position to communicate, what's a constructive progress.

That's the way I'll put it.

Speaker 7

Okay. You said that about INR 14,000 crores is debt and INR 2,500 crores is equity. So That is about 16,500. So what is the total capitalized cost of this project?

Speaker 1

I think the metro operations is around 16,000, okay. 16,000, yes. Metro operations is 16,000. We have not done much on the transit oriented development. I guess that we have around 18,500,000 square feet of development that can be we can do.

But against that, what we have done is only around 1.2.

Speaker 7

So I was referring basically the cost overruns part, so which you have funded. So the $16,500 includes your cost overruns?

Speaker 1

Yes, yes, yes, yes, includes the cost overruns. We don't expect any increase in the metro cost, okay? Whatever cost will come in the project will be only towards transit oriented development.

Speaker 7

The other question was on the mobilization advance. You did touch upon that INR 450 crores you received for the high speed rail. So are these advances interest bearing or these are interest 3 operational advance.

Speaker 1

They are interest free advances. And I think there is another installment of a similar amount coming this quarter.

Speaker 3

Okay. And one more question was on

Speaker 7

the AP Receivers, if you remember, year band, I think, May 2019, These orders were canceled on the 2020, sorry, all these orders were canceled by the AP government. So have we received any monies from there, the pending So what if we can update on the status, how much is the due still pending and how much you have recovered?

Speaker 1

So there has been some progress there. It is not We have not been able to collect, but collection is coming in a trickle, okay? So I don't see any major improvement in the collections. But having said this, We are actively discussing with the government to resolve this matter. And adequately, we have done with the ECL provisions.

And we do believe that we should be in a position to resolve this entire All the orders under the under that particular state is concerned, which we had, I think, last year removed it from our order book. But we are talking to the government to tell us as much as possible the government does recognize for whatever work we have done, it should get paid. But as I told earlier, any government related job in terms of whenever it comes to claims or settlements will take time. So we have been realizing, but it's not of the very satisfactory amount. And hopefully, I guess, in the next 1 or 2 quarters, we should see some progress.

Speaker 7

But how much would be the amount that will be pending still?

Speaker 1

The amount would be in the range of, I would say, net would be net of receivables will be around, say, INR1800 crores to INR1900 crores.

Speaker 7

After the Ethyl provisioning, you are saying. So this is the gross amount or after the Ethyl provision?

Speaker 1

This would be the net loss amount, please.

Speaker 7

Okay. And how much of ECL if you recollect, how much of ECL provisioning would have already been done?

Speaker 1

That would be in the range of maybe $100 crores.

Speaker 7

Okay. So this set remains standard. And as of now, you believe that it will come Over the due course of time.

Speaker 1

Yes. We do evaluate this whole thing as we do evaluate it. And we will adequately provide in case we see any lack of progress on this. But it is being continuously evaluated and pursued with the government authorities.

Speaker 7

Okay. Thanks, P. R. That's it from my side. Thank you, Nandir.

Speaker 2

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Atul Tiwari from Citi. Yes.

Speaker 4

Thanks a lot.

Speaker 3

Sir, just one clarification. For the net working capital for 4 business, you said INR 22,000 crores out of INR 35, right?

Speaker 1

31,000 is the net working capital we have at the group level.

Speaker 3

Okay. At the group level, 31, And for the 4 business, the parent and hydrocarbon and other E and

Speaker 1

C? 22, yes, yes. That number is 22, right? Yes.

Speaker 3

Okay. And you expect to maintain this at the same absolute level by the Q4?

Speaker 1

That is our intention. So, Apul, I don't know whether you heard me. The intention is to maintain The L and T Group's working capital position as of March 21 at the same or almost the same level as at March 20. And fully with good collections and yet have a vastly improved Q4. So we are monitoring it.

And we also like to mention here with response to this part that we are also prospectively ensuring that Wherever there is a visibility of collection happening from that client, in all those projects we are ramping up our operations, Wherever we are seeing visibility of collections not happening in all sub sites, we are ensuring that Execution is in line with the collections momentum. The focus on working capital at an absolute number is a combination of these two factors that you progress on execution at a higher pace in places where You see visibility of collections. And in places, we don't see visibility of collections. The work is only to the extent of the money is collected.

Speaker 3

Okay. That's very clear. And so my last question is on that 50% order book, which is on the fixed cost. So is there some kind of partial hedging that you do at the like the group level on commodity exchanges or in ForEx markets To at least partially hit some of the commodity price risk. In that part of the order book, it is on the fixed cost.

Speaker 1

So it is like this. At the time of bid itself, As I said, the risk management protocol, the way we follow in L and T is we do give our corporate treasury Our team provides us provides the big teams the kind of expected rates which need to be factored For procurements that may happen over the period of the project execution, so hopefully, till now, I mean, at least in the near term past, I don't remember having witnessed any sort of a cost overrun because of Adverse movement in commodity prices and where we are not even have a pass through.

Speaker 3

Okay. But just overpass obviously 2, 3 months, the the movement that we have seen, that kind of movement had not been seen

Speaker 1

for past several years, I guess. But there is also a possibility that, okay, we are only talking of This current volatility in the commodity prices in this quarter, but there have been quarters where commodity prices have been also benign, right? So that extent, it's a combination. And at the end of the day, we have to ensure that the job margins do not get affected As and when they were bid, because of any sort of commodity price variations. And as I said, We have not had any substantial impact in the near term, I mean, in the near past in terms of having margins impacted because of adverse movement.

Speaker 3

Yes, sir. Very clear. Thanks a lot.

Speaker 2

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, we take the last question from the line of Priyankar Biswas from Nomura Financial Services. Please go ahead.

Speaker 3

Yes. Good evening, sir. So first quickly, can you give me the split Like, firstly, how much of the order book is right now multilateral funded? And Secondly, in the prospects pipeline that you said, like the domestic prospects is 2,200,000,000,000. So can you just split that up like how much do you see in, let's say, metro, expressways or what are the splits that

Speaker 7

you used to

Speaker 1

Okay. So as far as multilateral, see, we have a 3,031,000 crores order book. So the amount of orders or the projects which are under multilateral funding is in the range of around INR 91,000 crores, okay? So that's my first response to your question. And as far as our order book composition, sector wise is concerned, So we talked about core business around domestic around 2 lakh 20,000 odd crores, okay?

So a major part of that is Coming from infrastructure itself and more uniformly spaced across all the 4 or 5 segments we have in infrastructure. And we have, I would say, around, I would say, 15,000 odd crores on the hydrocarbon side And other businesses roughly around, I would say, INR 8000, INR 9000 crores. And the rest is all under infrastructure. And they are, I would say, Broadly, at the same level across the segments of, be it B and F or Aviation Civil or Transportation Intra or Water.

Speaker 3

And sir, just one more, if I may. So what I was observing that in the Infrastructure segment that you reported, it seems that the international execution is lagging far more compared to the domestic execution. I mean, that's what I observed. So has this anything to do with logistics constraints like Lack of container availability or the sharp rise in shipping rates. And if so, what is the hedging strategy here?

Like what are the steps being taken?

Speaker 1

So it is not with respect to any sort of cargo movement prices. But as I said in the early part of the call, that especially with regards to supply light constraints, it is more manifest in when it refers to cross border shipments. To that extent, there has been, I would say, but the amount of impact what we had witnessed in Q2, to a large extent, that has also got normalized. And hopefully, into Q4, the progress of execution in the international projects also should become near normal like the way we have seen in domestic.

Speaker 3

As I just missed one figure, so in Hyderabad Metro, can you repeat the amount, what was the amount for depreciation?

Speaker 1

INR 75 crores per quarter.

Speaker 2

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, that was the last question. I now hand the conference over to Mr. P. Ramakrishnan for closing comments.

Speaker 1

So thank you, everyone, for participating in the call. I hope we have been able to answer all of your queries and questions. But given the expanse of our business, I'm sure you will have some follow on questions. So please feel free to call me or Harish in case you would like to have any clarifications. Thanks for taking your time off this evening and looking forward to meeting all of you in person soon.

Thank you.

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