National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) reported its best-ever financial performance for FY26, with revenue reaching ₹17,843 crore, representing a 6.28% year-on-year growth. The company achieved historic production milestones across bauxite, alumina, and metal segments. Despite alumina price volatility, strong operational efficiencies, robust domestic volume growth, and the strategic expansion of its 5th stream refinery have fortified the company’s profitability and outlook for the upcoming fiscal years.
Historic Financial Growth
NALCO has concluded the financial year 2025-26 with record-breaking results. The company’s revenue from operations climbed to ₹17,843 crore, up from ₹16,788 crore in the previous year. Profitability metrics also saw significant improvement, with EBITDA growing by 8.72% to ₹8,613 crore and Profit After Tax (PAT) increasing by 9.22% to reach ₹5,816 crore.
Operational Milestones and Production
The company achieved its best-ever physical performance across all major segments. Bauxite excavation saw a 6% growth, while hydrate and calcined alumina production grew by approximately 11.5%. Metal production rose by 2.61%, supported by a 41.84% surge in coal production from the Utkal coal block. These improvements were further bolstered by enhanced energy efficiencies and reduced consumption of key raw materials like caustic soda and furnace oil.
Strategic Outlook and Expansion
Looking ahead, NALCO is focused on its 5th stream refinery expansion, with commissioning slated to begin in June 2026. This project is expected to add 2 lakh tons of alumina production capacity in the current fiscal, scaling up to 1 million tons annually by next year. Additionally, the company is progressing with a new 0.5 million ton aluminium smelter project, with substantial capital expenditure expected to peak between FY29 and FY30.
Cost Management and Market Strategy
Management highlighted that employee costs are trending downward as a percentage of total expenditure, dropping from 18% to 16%, aided by the replacement of retiring staff with new, lower-pay-scale personnel. Regarding raw materials, NALCO is leveraging its captive coal mines to maintain a competitive cost structure. While global alumina prices have softened due to supply surpluses, the company expects to compensate for this through increased volumes and strong domestic sales growth, targeting a rise from 140,000 tons to between 2.5 lakh and 3 lakh tons in the domestic market.
Source: BSE
