Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) on Thursday reported a consolidated net loss of ₹406.26 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2020.

The company had clocked a net profit of ₹99.74 crore in the corresponding quarter of 2019-20.

Its total income during the June 2020 quarter stood at ₹1,689.82 crore, compared with ₹2,815.21 crore in the year-ago quarter.

The firm’s total expenses declined to ₹1,989.60 crore, against ₹2,703.55 crore a year ago.

“The revenue of construction companies was impacted by the nationwide lockdown, resulting in halting of construction, non-availability of labour and disruption in supply chain,” the company said in a statement adding that in this backdrop, it recorded a drop in turnover.

The company said it has recorded an exceptional loss of ₹242 crore “on account of conciliating an NHAl award for Rs 219 crore”. It added that this was done to generate immediate liquidity in operations given the difficulties presented by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The firm has registered an order backlog of ₹16,558 crore at the end of the first quarter of 2020-21, it said. The company added that subsequently, three projects worth ₹7,402 crore were won in joint venture in July and August and HCC’s share of ₹3,337 crore will be reflected in the order book in the next quarter.

“The debt carve-out resolution plan with lenders is expected to conclude in the third quarter of 2020-21,” the company said.

HCC Director and Group Chief Executive Officer Arjun Dhawan said, “The impact of Covid-19 on our industry and economy cannot be understated. We expect the aftershocks to be felt for many months and are altering our business plans accordingly.”

He added that the company’s focus has remained on normalising its operations while working out solutions with our clients, including raising liquidity through conciliations of claims. “On a highly positive note, we have secured three prestigious orders that have substantially improved our order book.”

The company said the new project wins included ₹1,900 crore NHAI order to construct a a 22-km highway link between Jharkhand and Bihar, ₹ 4,167 crore contract for Bhadbhut barrage in Gujarat and a ₹1,335-crore Rail Vikas Nigam order to construct 8.04 km braud-gaurge railway line between Rishikesh and Karanprayag in Uttarakhand.

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