Balrampur Chini Mills reports improved quarterly performance driven by rising sugar prices and advances in its polylactic acid project, indicating a promising future despite market volatility.
Balrampur Chini Mills has struck a more upbeat tone after a quarter shaped by firmer sugar prices and a tighter domestic inventory backdrop, which management says is helping offset rising cane costs. The company said it is carrying 45.67 lakh tonnes of sugar at an average cost of INR37.19 a kilogram, leaving it well placed to benefit from stronger realisations in the months ahead. Industry reports cited the same inventory position and pricing backdrop, arguing that the current market has become more volatile as traders debate how tight the season really is.
The clearest strategic focus remains the group’s 80,000-tonne polylactic acid project, which Balrampur says is on schedule. According to the company, lactic acid commissioning is expected in October, followed by PLA output in December. Management has also pointed to technical trials for packaging uses in pan masala and gutkha as early evidence of demand, while saying the plant could become a major new earnings engine if adoption widens into other packaging categories.
The sugar cycle itself is still doing much of the heavy lifting. Balrampur’s executives said the company’s integrated model, cane development work and varietal balancing have supported better crushing and production, with rainfall in its command area described as favourable for cane growth. They also argued that any move by the government to tighten ethanol diversion away from sugarcane feedstocks would be manageable, as the company could shift towards C-heavy molasses and grain-based ethanol. Even so, the distillery business may see some margin pressure if that policy change arrives, particularly if feedstock economics change.
Management remains confident that stronger sugar pricing will more than compensate for those risks, including a possible increase in the state advised price of cane. It also believes the current imbalance in the market will persist for some time, with inventory expected to normalise only gradually. That view underpins a constructive outlook for the next season, even as the company acknowledges that the first quarter is inherently weaker because it falls in the off-season and reflects carrying costs rather than peak sales.
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