OIL’s standalone profit slips in FY26, but consolidated earnings rise on refinery gains, stronger Q4 File Photo
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OIL’s standalone profit slips in FY26, but consolidated earnings rise on refinery gains, stronger Q4

OIL’s standalone profit fell 27% in FY26, but consolidated PAT was up 7% as refinery profits and Q4 output strengthened

PSU Watch Bureau

New Delhi: Oil India Limited’s (OIL) standalone Profit After Tax (PAT) for FY2025-26 dropped 27 percent to Rs 4,455.34 crore from Rs 6,114.19 crore a year ago. Profit before tax dropped more sharply to Rs 5,419.86 crore from Rs 7,850.95 crore. On the other hand, revenue from operations fell to Rs 21,345.94 crore in FY26 from Rs 22,117.22 crore a year earlier, a decline of about 3.5 percent. Operating margin weakened to 17.30 percent from 30.96 percent, and net profit margin eased to 20.87 percent from 27.64 percent, showing that higher costs and weaker upstream economics outweighed the revenue base.

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Q4 FY26: The strong quarter

The quarterly trend was stronger. Standalone revenue in Q4 FY26 rose to Rs 5,960.67 crore from Rs 4,916.10 crore in the December quarter, and Rs 5,518.94 crore in Q4 FY25. Profit before tax jumped to Rs 2,057 crore from Rs 947.72 crore sequentially, and Rs 2,020.31 crore a year earlier. Profit after tax rose to Rs 1,789.53 crore from Rs 808.31 crore quarter-on-quarter and Rs 1,591.48 crore year-on-year.

The segment performance explains the weaker standalone outcome for the entire financial year. Crude oil revenue for FY26 fell to Rs 14,495.93 crore from Rs 15,740.82 crore, and segment profit before tax fell to Rs 4,301.44 crore from Rs 6,073.04 crore. Natural gas revenue rose marginally to Rs 5,636.72 crore, but segment profit dropped to Rs 1,567.85 crore from Rs 2,565.30 crore. LPG revenue and profit also slipped. The one bright spot was pipeline transportation, where revenue rose to Rs 936.20 crore from Rs 572.23 crore and segment profit turned to Rs 391.99 crore from a Rs 1.65 crore loss. Renewable energy was broadly flat.

Consolidated results

At the group level, the picture was better. Consolidated revenue from operations rose to Rs 37,049.55 crore in FY26 from Rs 36,163.75 crore, up 2.4 percent. Profit before tax inched up to Rs 9,581.92 crore from Rs 9,436.43 crore, and profit after tax rose 7.3 percent to Rs 7,550.67 crore from Rs 7,039.63 crore. The improvement was helped by a much stronger contribution from associates and joint ventures, where share of profit swung to Rs 1,121.56 crore from a loss of Rs 58.65 crore last year.

Q4 was stronger still. Consolidated revenue from operations rose to Rs 10,012.77 crore from Rs 9,111.43 crore in the December quarter and Rs 9,587.82 crore in Q4 FY25. Profit before tax climbed to Rs 3,119.13 crore from Rs 1,909.98 crore quarter-on-quarter and Rs 2,192.62 crore year-on-year. Profit after tax rose to Rs 2,424.46 crore from Rs 1,435.89 crore sequentially and Rs 1,496.97 crore a year earlier. That makes the consolidated fourth quarter materially stronger than both the previous quarter and the same quarter last year.

Refinery products were the biggest group-level driver. Segment revenue rose to Rs 26,392.75 crore from Rs 25,146.68 crore, and segment profit before tax nearly doubled to Rs 3,900.44 crore from Rs 2,051.60 crore. Crude oil and natural gas segment profits, however, were lower year-on-year, mirroring the standalone upstream pressure. Pipeline transportation again stayed in positive territory, while renewable energy remained a small contributor.

Cash flow, balance sheet & dividend

The board recommended a final dividend of Rs 1 per equity share for FY26, subject to shareholder approval. That comes in addition to interim dividends of Rs 3.50 and Rs 7 per share already paid during the year, taking the annual payout to Rs 11.50 per share.

On the balance sheet, standalone net worth rose to Rs 42,127.67 crore from Rs 39,530.52 crore, while consolidated net worth increased to Rs 53,716.19 crore from Rs 48,955.94 crore. Standalone debt-equity stayed flat at 0.27:1, while the consolidated ratio inched up to 0.56:1 from 0.55:1.

The main risk item remains the royalty-linked service tax/GST dispute. The standalone notes say the company provided Rs 865.12 crore in FY26 toward disputed service tax/GST on royalty, including interest of Rs 360.42 crore, and that the total provision till March 31, 2026 stood at Rs 4,753.77 crore. That is large enough to remain a key overhang.

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Operations: Output and drilling improved

Operationally, OIL said it produced 0.891 MMT of crude oil from matured and old oilfields in Q4 FY26 versus 0.844 MMT a year earlier, and crude price realisation rose 5 percent to USD 77.89 per barrel from USD 74.46 per barrel. The company also said it achieved its highest daily crude oil production of 10,566 MT in the last decade, drilled 74 wells during the year, completed 307 workover jobs, and maintained a reserve replacement ratio above 1. A statement said subsidiary NRL’s profit after tax rose 90 percent to Rs 3,057 crore in FY26, with GRM at USD 13.43 per barrel.

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