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Informist, Friday, Apr. 24, 2026

 

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--RIL Jan-Mar consol net profit INR 169.71 bln
--Analysts saw RIL Jan-Mar consol net profit at INR 191.09 bln
--RIL Jan-Mar consol revenue INR 2.99 tln
--Analysts saw RIL Jan-Mar consol revenue at INR 2.82 tln
--RIL Jan-Mar consol net profit INR 169.71 bln vs INR 194.07 bln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar consol revenue INR 2.99 tln vs INR 2.65 tln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar cost of materials at INR 1.29 tln vs INR 1.07 tln yr ago
--RIL to pay INR 6 per share dividend
--RIL FY26 consol net profit INR 807.75 bln vs INR 696.48 bln year ago
--RIL FY26 consol revenue INR 10.76 tln vs INR 9.80 tln year ago
--RIL: Jio Platforms Jan-Mar ARPU INR 214/month vs INR 213.7/month qtr ago
--RIL Jan-Mar consol EBITDA INR 485.88 bln vs INR 487.37 bln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar consol EBITDA margin 14.9% vs 16.9% year ago
--RIL: Jio Platforms Jan-Mar revenue INR 382.59 bln vs INR 372.62 bln qtr ago
--RIL Jan-Mar capex INR 405.60 bln vs INR 360.41 bln year ago
--RIL: Jio Platforms Jan-Mar EBITDA INR 200.60 bln vs INR 193.03 bln qtr ago
--RIL: Consol cash, cash equivalent on Mar 31 at INR 2.50 tln
--RIL: Jio Platforms Jan-Mar EBITDA margin 52.4% vs 51.8% qtr ago
--RIL outstanding debt INR 3.74 tln on Mar 31 vs INR 3.48 tln year ago
--RIL net debt INR 1.25 tln on Mar 31 vs INR 1.17 tln year ago
--RIL: Jio Platforms customer base 524.40 mln on Mar 31 vs 515.3 mln qtr ago
--RIL: Jio Platforms Jan-Mar data traffic 66.0 bln GB vs 62.3 bln GB qtr ago
--RIL Jan-Mar oil-to-chemicals revenue INR 1.85 tln vs INR 1.65 tln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar oil-to-chemicals EBITDA INR 145.20 bln vs INR 150.80 bln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar oil-to-chemicals EBITDA margin 7.9%, down 130 bps on year
--RIL: Jan-Mar ARPU slightly up on better subscriber mix
--RIL Jan-Mar oil-to-chemicals ops throughput 19.5 mln tn, down 3.9% on year
--Jan-Mar ARPU growth hit due to less days in the quarter
--RIL Jan-Mar oil-to-chemicals output for sale 17.2 mln tn, down 3.9% on year
--RIL Jan-Mar Reliance Retail revenue INR 873.44 bln vs INR 786.22 bln yr ago
--RIL Jan-Mar Reliance Retail EBITDA INR 66.90 bln vs INR 65.10 bln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar Reliance Retail EBITDA margin 7.9% vs 8.5% year ago
--RIL: Q4 oil-to-chemicals sales up on higher domestic mkt pdt placement
--RIL: Q4 oil-to-chemicals sales up on better price realisation
--RIL: Reliance Retail store count 20,160 on Mar 31 vs 19,340 year ago
--RIL: Reliance Retail area operated 78.30 mln sq ft in Q4, up 1.2% on yr
--RIL Jan-Mar oil and gas revenue INR 58.67 bln vs INR 64.40 bln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar oil and gas EBITDA INR 41.95 bln vs INR 51.23 bln year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar oil and gas EBITDA margin 71.5%, down 800 bps on year
--RIL Jan-Mar KGD6 gas avg price realised $9.63 /mBtu vs $10.09 /mBtu year ago
--RIL Jan-Mar CBM gas avg price realised $9.01 /mBtu vs $10.36 /mBtu year ago
--RIL Q4 KGD6 block production 59.6 bln of cubic feet equivalent, down 6.4% YoY
--RIL Jan-Mar CBM production 2.9 bln of cubic feet equivalent, up 7.4% YoY
--RIL: Q4 oil and gas sales down on low gas price realisation in KGD6, CBM
--RIL:Oil-to-chemicals EBITDA hit on weak margin for downstream chemicals ops
--RIL: Q4 oil and gas sales down on lower gas volume in KGD6 field
--RIL:Oil-to-chemicals EBITDA hit due to disruptions from conflict in W Asia
--RIL Jan-Mar oil and gas EBITDA down due to low sales, high operating costs
--RIL FY26 capex INR 1.44 tln
--RIL: Faced headwinds due to higher crude, freight, insurance, fuel costs
--RIL: Kept retail fuel prices unch which led to under recoveries
--RIL: Agile crude sourcing amid West Asia conflict to sustain throughput

 

By Sunil Raghu

 

AHMEDABAD – Reliance Industries Ltd.'s consolidated net profit for the March quarter fell well short of analysts' expectations and was down nearly 13% from the corresponding period a year ago. This was despite a jump of over 12% in its revenue from operations that not just beat the Street's expectations but was the highest year-on-year rise in 13 quarters.

 

The oil-to-chemicals-to-telecommunications behemoth failed to beat analysts' expectations for net profit growth because its overall expenses jumped on higher cost of crude oil, freight, insurance, and fuel costs owing to the military conflict in West Asia that led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz from Mar. 1. For the March quarter, the company's cost of materials was INR 1.29 trillion, up 20% from INR 1.07 trillion a year ago. The company also had to keep retail fuel prices unchanged, which resulted in under recoveries, Reliance Industries said in a statement that accompanied its March quarter and 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) earnings.

 

The company's revenue for the December quarter came from the rise in earnings from expected quarters--oil-to-chemicals, digital services, and retail. Strong momentum saw each of these segments deliver double-digit revenue growth. While all these business segments grew in the March quarter, the revenue of the oil and gas segment fell in line with natural decline in the Krishna Godavari Dhirubhai 6, or KG-D6, gas production, the company said.

 

The conglomerate's consolidated net profit fell 12.6% on year to INR 169.71 billion, below analysts' expectations of INR 191.09 billion. Its consolidated revenue rose over 12% on year to INR 2.99 trillion, beating expectations of INR 2.82 trillion.

 

From the trailing quarter, the company reported a fall of nearly 9% in its consolidated net profit. Revenue rose a little over 11% compared with the previous quarter.

 

The company's consolidated earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation was INR 485.88 billion, flat against the year-ago period. Its consolidated EBITDA margin fell 200 basis points on year to 14.9%.

 

The company's net profit came under pressure as its expenses in the March quarter rose over 21% on year to INR 2.76 trillion from INR 2.40 trillion a year ago. The cost of raw material consumed was up nearly 20% on year at INR 1.29 trillion and excise duty was up over 43% at INR 45.62 billion. The company's other expenses, too, were up over 4% on year at INR 411.93 billion.

 

OIL-TO-CHEMICALS SEGMENT

The oil-to-chemicals business, which accounted for just over 60% of the top line of Reliance Industries for the March quarter, saw its revenue grow over 12% on year to INR 1.85 trillion. The vertical's EBITDA fell nearly 4% on year to INR 145.20 billion, in line with what analysts had expected. For the December quarter, the EBITDA was a little over INR 165 billion. The fall in segment EBITDA came from multiple headwinds that curtailed margin capture, including a sharp rise in crude premiums on physical barrels, elevated freight and insurance cost, and higher fuel costs. Further, the company diverted propane and butane to boost liquefied petroleum gas output and KG-D6 gas to priority sectors. "Weak polymer deltas with sharp increase in feedstock and energy cost weighed on segment profitability," Reliance Industries said.

 

The transportation fuel cracks jumped sharply, particularly after the outbreak of the US-Iran military conflict. However, the margin capture remained challenging with significant volatility and policy interventions, the company said. The Singapore 92 RON gasoline cracks dropped 8% on year to $5.6 per barrel. This was because of the high light distillate inventories in Singapore capping the cracks and lower buying interest in some markets such as Indonesia. Singapore Gasoil 10-ppm cracks jumped to $35.4 per barrel, up 148% on year, primarily because of blockage of diesel and crude oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, significant regional refinery run cuts amid supply constraints, and suspension of Chinese product exports.

 

For the March quarter, the aviation turbine fuel cracks too rose 175% on year to $36.3 a barrel owing to disruption of jet fuel supply to Europe. Polymer margins saw a mixed trend. While polyethelene saw a year-on-year drop of 4% in the delta due to higher naphtha prices, the polypropylene margin went down 28% on year. The delta for polyvinyl chloride and the polyester chain rose 2% and 16% on year, respectively.

 

The segment's EBITDA margin during the quarter fell 130 basis points on year to 7.9%. The Brent crude oil price averaged $80.6 a barrel in the March quarter, up $4.9 a barrel from the same quarter in 2025.

 

The company's total crude oil throughput during the quarter was 19.5 million tonnes, down nearly 4% on year. The production meant for sale was 17.2 million tonnes, also down 4% on year. The company said agile crude sourcing in the wake of the conflict in West Asia helped it sustain the throughput.

 

RETAIL SEGMENT

The company's second-largest business vertical after the flagship oil-to-chemicals business, Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd. reported an 11% year-on-year jump in consolidated revenue from operations for the March quarter to INR 873.44 billion. The consolidated net profit from the division, however, rose just 1.6% on year to INR 35.74 billion.

 

The retail division accounted for 30% of the consolidated sales of Reliance Industries for the March quarter and over 31% of its revenue for the financial year 2025-26 (Apr-Mar). However, its contribution to the company's profit was much lower than that of the mainstay oil-to-chemicals business and the digital services division. Reliance Retail accounted for a little over 17% of the consolidated net profit of Reliance Industries for the March quarter and around 12% of the net profit for FY26.

 

Reliance Retail's EBITDA from operations for the quarter rose around 3% on year to INR 66.90 billion, from INR 65.10 billion for the year-ago quarter. This was in line with analysts' expectations of a 3-5% margin expansion and around 1% higher than the EBITDA growth the company had posted in the December quarter. However, the EBITDA margin for the vertical in the reporting quarter declined by 60 bps on year to 7.9%. In the year-ago quarter, Reliance Retail had reported an EBITDA margin of 8.5%. In the December quarter, the margin was 8%.

 

With a portfolio of 387 million registered customers and 1.93 billion annual transactions, Reliance Retail opened 181 new stores in the March quarter and exited the year ended Mar. 31 with 20,160 stores and 78.3 million square feet of operational store area. Across FY26, the company opened 1,564 new stores. During FY25, Reliance Retail had a total store count of 19,340 spread across a total area of 77.4 million square feet.

 

The number of transactions in the retail business jumped 62% on year to 585 million. The registered customer base increased nearly 11% on year to 387 million customers.

 

Reliance Industries said the JioMart e-commerce platform continued to expand its reach across more than 5,100 PIN codes and 1,200 cities, serviced by a network of over 3,100 stores in the March quarter. Customer acquisition on JioMart accelerated during the quarter with the addition of 5.8 million new customers, expanding the registered customer base by 98% on year.

 

In its fashion and lifestyle business, Reliance Retail undertook artificial intelligence-native operating model transformation, embedding intelligence across merchandising, supply chain, and omnichannel fulfilment. It diversified its online fashion portfolio and increased customer engagement, which resulted in a 23% year-on-year growth in the average bill value on Ajio, the company's online fashion platform. The Shein brand continued to maintain revenue growth momentum, supported by strong user traction, exceeding 11 million installations of the application and scaling of new option additions to 1,000 per day.

 

The consumer electronics stores operating under the Reliance Digital brand maintained revenue momentum with successful festival campaigns, new product launches, and broad-based growth across categories, Reliance Industries said.

 

JIO PLATFORMS

The consolidated revenue from Jio Platforms Ltd. for the March quarter grew 12.6% on year and 2.7% on quarter to INR 382.59 billion. It accounted for nearly 13% of the conglomerate's overall top line. The EBITDA of the segment grew almost 18% on year and about 4% on quarter to INR 200.60 billion. The EBITDA margin expanded 230 bps on year and 60 bps sequentially to 52.4%.

 

"...we are advancing steadily towards the listing of Jio Platforms... As we work to democratise access to AI tools and next-generation technology platforms, Jio is well placed to shape how India communicates, computes, and consumes content in the years ahead," Reliance Industries Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh D. Ambani was quoted as saying in the company's press release.

 

The customer base of Jio Platforms grew 7.4% on year to 524.4 million as of Mar. 31. The subscriber base stood at 515.3 million at the end of the December quarter. The average revenue per user improved to INR 214 per month in the March quarter from INR 206.2 per month in the year-ago quarter. In the December quarter, the figure was INR 213.7 per month.

 

The company said the average revenue per user increased with higher customer engagement and a better subscriber mix. It was partially affected by the lower number of days in the quarter. It added that the monthly churn was stable at 1.7% with net subscriber addition of 9.1 million during the quarter.

 

The total data traffic for the March quarter increased 35% on year to 66 billion gigabytes, with the per capita data consumption at 42.3 gigabytes per month. In the December quarter, the data traffic added up to 62.3 billion gigabytes.

 

"Jio's state-of-the-art connectivity and edge compute infrastructure make it the principal gateway through which AI services reach Indian consumers, households, and businesses. This will sustain Jio's industry-leading growth for many years to come," Reliance Jio Infocomm Chairman Akash M. Ambani said.

 

The company said its total subscriber base for fifth generation telecommunication services reached 268 million as of March and 5G now accounts for about 55% of its total wireless traffic. It added that the 2026 Indian Premier League season is expected to provide "significant seasonal demand tailwind, consistent with strong uplift patterns observed in previous years".

 

For FY26, Jio Platforms recorded a consolidated revenue from operations of INR 1.47 trillion, up nearly 15% on year.

 

JioHotstar brought in INR 83.72 billion for the March quarter, up over 21% on quarter. This unit added INR 310.48 billion in revenue for the full year, growing more than threefold.

 

OIL AND GAS

Revenue from the company's exploration business for the March quarter fell to INR 58.67 billion, down nearly 9% from the year-ago period, owing to lower production from its KG-D6 block and lower gas price realisation in KG-D6 and coal bed methane. The KG-D6 production refers to natural gas that is extracted from the Krishna-Godavari basin's D6 block. Coal bed methane, known in industry circles as CBM, is the natural gas extracted from coal seams in the Sohagpur blocks in Madhya Pradesh.

 

The oil and gas segment's EBITDA for the quarter fell over 18% on year and nearly 14% on quarter to INR 41.95 billion. The EBITDA margin for the segment, too, fell 800 bps on year to 71.5%.

 

During the quarter, the average price realisation for KG-D6 fell to $9.63 per million British thermal unit, from $10.09 per mBtu a year ago. For coal bed methane, the average realisation fell to $9.01 per mBtu from $10.36 per mBtu a year ago. Total production from the KG-D6 block fell over 6% on year to 59.6 billion of cubic feet equivalent, while the production of coal bed methane rose 7.4% on year to 2.9 billion of cubic feet equivalent.

 

Considering all the businesses, Reliance Industries invested INR 405.60 billion in capital expenditure in the March quarter, nearly 13% higher on year. For the March quarter of FY25, the company had incurred capital expenditure of INR 360.41 billion. Its outstanding debt at the end of the reporting quarter was up over 7% on year at INR 3.74 trillion. A year ago, this figure stood at INR 3.48 trillion. As of Mar. 31, its net debt was INR 1.25 trillion, also up from INR 1.17 trillion a year ago. Its cash and cash equivalents were INR 2.50 trillion. 

 

For FY26, the conglomerate's consolidated net profit rose 16% on year to INR 807.75 billion and revenue rose nearly 10% to INR 10.76 trillion. The company also announced that it had incurred capital expenditure of INR 1.44 trillion during FY26 and would pay INR 6 per share as dividend for the year.

 

Reliance Industries announced its earnings after market hours. Friday, its shares closed 1.2% lower at INR 1,327.80 on the National Stock Exchange.  End

 

US$1 = INR 94.24

 

With inputs from Shakshi Jain and Avishek Rakshit

Edited by Rajeev Pai

 

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