Sona BLW Precision Forgings Ltd. announces Q4 FY23 Results

Gurugram- Sona BLW Precision Forgings Ltd. (Sona Comstar)., an automotive technology company providing mission-critical systems and components for electrified and non-electrified powertrain segments, announced its financial results for the quarter and year ended March 31st, 2023.

In the latest financial results, a company has reported substantial growth in Q4 FY23, primarily due to its investment in battery electric vehicles (BEVs).

The company achieved a revenue of Rs. 744 crores in Q4 FY23, representing a remarkable 35% YoY growth rate. Of this, the revenue share from BEVs stood at 28%, indicating the growing demand for eco-friendly transportation options. BEV revenue growth increased by 37% YoY, demonstrating the company's focus on this area of the automotive industry.

Further highlighting the company's commitment to BEVs, EV programs contributed 77% to the net order book of Rs. 21,500 crores as of March 31st, 2023.

For the entire fiscal year, the company's revenue reached Rs. 2,676 crores, representing a growth of 26% YoY. The revenue share from BEVs stood at 26%, with BEV revenue growth increasing by 33% YoY. The company's EBITDA for the fiscal year was Rs. 696 crores, with an EBITDA margin of 26.0%, representing a 25% YoY growth. The company's PAT stood at Rs. 395 crores, with a net profit margin of 14.8%, an increase of 28% YoY.

The net order book also saw an increase, rising to Rs. 21,500 crores from Rs. 18,600 crores as of March 31st, 2022.

The company's success is attributed to its focus on electric vehicles, which are becoming increasingly popular as people seek out more sustainable transportation options. The growing demand for eco-friendly vehicles also highlights a shift in consumer preferences in the automotive industry.

The company has added twelve new EV programs and seven new EV customers in FY23. The number of awarded programs increased to 42 across 26 different customers.

With regard to Operational developments, A North American New Age OEM has awarded the company a program to supply Final Drive Differential assemblies, Intermediate Gears, and Input shafts for their upcoming Electric Class 4 truck. This program has added Rs 501 crores to Sona Comestar’s order book, and the start of production is in H2 FY24.

The company developed and won new orders for four new products – Electronic Differential Lock (EDL), Intermediate Gears, Input shafts and Spiral Bevel Gears - in FY23.

On the event of publishing the results, Mr Vivek Vikram Singh, MD & Group CEO, commented: "We achieved our highest quarterly revenue, EBITDA and net profit in Q4 FY23. BEV revenue grew 37% y-o-y to cross Rs 200 crores, representing 28% of overall revenues. We closed FY23 with a strong order book, which gives us the confidence to sustain growth momentum in FY24 and beyond. We have made substantial progress on our technology roadmap by developing four new products in FY23. Last quarter, we won a new program from a North American OEM of electric CVs, which is a big step forward for us in business development and technology. We will supply the final drive differential assembly, intermediate gears and input shafts for electric Class 4 CV. This win demonstrates our ability to keep adding new and higher-value-added products for our customers. On the ESG front, we made credible progress by developing and implementing an innovative solution in our forging plant at Gurgaon that helps us recycle and save around 12,000 litres of water per day."

On April 10th, 2023, Sona Comstar inaugurated its second-largest manufacturing plant in Chakan, Pune. This plant manufactures driveline products for EV and non-EV applications and serves customers in India and globally. The plant leverages cutting-edge technologies ensuring the highest levels of quality and precision in the manufacturing process. It will be critical in scaling up capacities to fulfil the company's large order book.