Dalmia Bharat, a leading cement manufacturing company, reported a sharp decline of 75.19 per cent in its net consolidated profit for the quarter ending December 31, 2025. The company disclosed in a BSE filing that its profit after tax stood at Rs 660 million in Q3 FY25, compared to Rs 2.66 billion in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year.

The company’s net consolidated total income dropped by 12.17 per cent to Rs 32.18 billion in Q3 FY25, down from Rs 36.64 billion in the corresponding quarter last year.

According to Puneet Dalmia, the managing director and CEO, India experienced a slightly slower start to the year following multiple years of high growth. He assured that the company’s capacity expansion plans were progressing as expected, with a target of reaching 49.5 million tonnes (MnT) by the end of the fiscal year.

Chief Financial Officer Dharmender Tuteja highlighted that cement demand growth in Q3 fell short of earlier expectations. He noted that the company’s volumes declined by 2 per cent year-on-year, while EBITDA fell by 34.5 per cent year-on-year to Rs 5.11 billion, primarily due to continued softness in cement prices. However, he expressed optimism for the coming quarters, citing improving demand and signs of a positive trend in prices.

During the quarter, the company completed debottlenecking projects at its facilities in Rajgangpur, Odisha (0.6 MnT), and Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh (0.3 MnT), increasing its total clinker capacity to 23.5 MnT. Additionally, it commissioned a 4 MW captive solar power plant in Medinipur, West Bengal, and 46 MW renewable energy capacity under Group Captive, bringing its total operational renewable energy capacity to 252 MW.

On the first day of the World Economic Forum (WEF) at Davos, the state government signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) worth over Rs 3.35 trillion for industrial investments in Vidarbha. By 8:30 pm (Indian time), the largest deal was secured with JSW Group, involving investment proposals worth Rs 3 trillion, which are expected to create 10,000 jobs. A significant portion of this investment is likely to be concentrated in Nagpur and Gadchiroli.

The Pune-based Kalyani Group, with interests in the defence and steel sectors, also signed an MoU for an investment proposal in Gadchiroli. According to a source from the state’s industries department, there is a possibility that the company will establish a defence production unit there.

UltraTech Cement is expected to report a 26 per cent decline in net profit year-on-year (Y-o-Y) for the quarter ending December 31, primarily due to lower realisations and higher depreciation, according to analysts. The company’s profit after tax is estimated at Rs 13.04 billion for the third quarter of FY25.

A survey conducted among five brokerages revealed that UltraTech Cement is projected to achieve a revenue of Rs 166.96 billion, reflecting a 1.2 per cent increase Y-o-Y.

Among the brokerages surveyed, Axis Securities presented the most optimistic projections, while B&K Securities predicted the slowest growth in both revenue and profit after tax (PAT) for the company.

According to Yes Securities, the company’s volumes are anticipated to grow by 9 per cent Y-o-Y to reach 29.76 million tons per annum. The growth in volumes is attributed to strong demand from institutional players and continued momentum in the housing sector.

Analysts noted that after weak demand growth of around 1-2 per cent in H1FY25, industry cement demand improved in Q3FY25. However, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, in its quarterly update, pointed out regional challenges, including pollution-related curbs in Delhi-NCR, sand scarcity, and unfavourable weather conditions such as severe cold and unseasonal rains, which negatively impacted overall demand growth.

The average cost of producing one ton of cement (excluding fixed costs) is expected to decrease by 4 per cent Y-o-Y, amounting to Rs 4,761 in Q3FY25.