Patel Engineering Eyeing Hydropower Projects Worth Rs 1.5 Lakh Crore

Patel Engineering Ltd. sees a huge opportunity in the hydropower sector in the financial year 2024–25, the company’s managing director, Kavita Shirvaikar, said on Wednesday, adding that it is well-positioned to capitalise on the segment.

Shirvaikar told NDTV Profit that the company is in the process of securing hydroelectric power projects of around 38,000 megawatts through competitive bidding.

“As expected, we now see a huge opportunity available in the sector that we operate in. Hydropower projects of around 38,000 megawatts are coming for bid in the near future, which, in value terms, will be around Rs 1.5 lakh crore. We see momentum in sectors like irrigation too. We have identified and shortlisted about Rs 50,000 crore worth of projects for which we will be bidding in the near future,” she said.

“Currently, our share in hydropower execution is 45%. We have strong leadership and a team. We are well-positioned and have implemented a robust system and processes. So you see, we are well-poised to take advantage of the opportunity available in this sector,” Shirvaikar added.

While hydropower projects contribute 60–70% to Patel Engineering’s order book, Shirvaikar also expects irrigation and tunnelling projects to increase the order inflow. 

“Considering our success ratio, we expect that in the next one year, we should be adding around Rs 10,000–15,000 crore in our order book,” she noted.

Kavita Shirvaikar said that the company would also bid for road projects selectively. “Right now, we continue to focus on our core areas like irrigation, tunnelling, pipeline works and hydropower. We will bid for road projects selectively.”

Shirvaikar revealed that the company expects to receive arbitration awards worth Rs 100–150 crore in the next year.

In the quarter ended June 2024, Patel Engineering reported revenue of Rs 1,101.6 crore, down 1.52% on a year-on-year basis from Rs 1,118.6 crore in the corresponding period of the preceding fiscal. 

Ebitda was also down by 1.12% YoY at Rs 168.6 crore in Q1 from Rs 170.5 crore in the year-ago period. 

However, the company’s net profit grew by 25.8% to Rs 48.1 crore from Rs 38.2 crore reported in the first quarter of FY24.