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Atul Ltd | Annual Report 2011-12
Letter to the Shareholders
Dear Shareholders,
Atul completed 60 years of service through business, and
we pay
tribute
to our Founder, Mr Kasturbhai Lalbhai, for
leaving behind a legacy of Vision, Perseverance and Ethics.
We also express our gratitude to Mr Balwantrai Mazumdar
and Mr Siddharth Kasturbhai for their life time commitment
in building strong foundations and creating one of the finest
chemical sites in the world. Our committed employees and
illustrious Directors are the backbone of our future growth,
and we are looking forward to expand and diversify our
business footprints in a responsible way.
The world
economy
is estimated (by IMF) to have grown
3.8% in 2011 - advanced economies 1.6% and emerging
economies 6.2%,with GDP for the year of around US$ 70 tn.
Indian economy is estimated (by the Government) to have
grown 6.9% in 2011-12, with GDP of around US$ 1.7 tn.
Despite the hugely uncertain economic and political outlook
at this time, we remain steadfast in fulfilling the needs of
diverse industries which provide infinite possibilities, thus
creating, giving and adding value.
The growth of the world
Chemical Industry in 2011
was
about 4.8%, with revenues of around US$ 3.4 tn. (excluding
Pharmaceutical industry). Indian Chemical industry, despite a
huge untapped potential, grew only about 7%, with revenues
of around US$ 83 bn.The United Nations proclaimed 2011 as
the
International Year of Chemistry
, commemorating the
achievements of chemistry. Grounded in the knowledge of
chemistry, our Company, in its own small way, is working to
make the label ‘Made in India’ proud across the world.
The price of crude oil fluctuated between US$ 75 and
US$ 114 per barrel; coal price in India increased by 24% and
Indian
`
vacillated between 44.65 to 54.24 to the US$. As the
key raw materials used by our Company are derived from
crude oil, steam and electricity are largely generated from
coal and exports, imports and foreign currency loans are
largely denominated in the US$, any abrupt changes in them
affect our
profitability.Wewill embrace
external realities
by
seeking consistent internal improvements and actualising
new growth opportunities.
We are not happy with the
results
we delivered which are as
follows:
Sales grew by 17% from
`
1508 cr to
`
1761 cr
Contribution margin declined from 27% to 26%
PBT before exceptional items declined from
`
129 cr to
`
116 cr
PAT decreased from
`
90 cr to
`
88 cr
RoCE declined from 18% to 17%
Gross working capital improved from 151 days to 150
Borrowing increased from
`
327 cr to
`
388 cr
Our Company pursued several Key Initiatives to seek faster
growth
:
Completed
p
-Cresol project
Commenced implementation of 2,4 DCP, BLR 1 and
BLR 2 projects
Executed 29 debottlenecking and small projects
Commissioned multi-purpose facilities in Atul
Bioscience
Acquired DPD, a company engaged in tissue culture of
date palms
Commissioned tissue culture facility of Atul Rajasthan
Date Palms
Formed a JV each for textile chemicals and stone care
chemicals