Conference Call with Dalmia Bharat Management and Analysts on Q4FY20 and Full Year Earnings Performance and Outlook. Listen to the full earnings transcript. 

Key Highlights:

• We came out with Dalmia Support Helpline which is a helpline for 24 hours everyday to extend any type of help whether medical, travel arrangement or whatever needed for employees. There were apprehensions in the mind of the people when they would get salary, wages and more among workers

• In the month of March, we advanced payments of salary and wages by 4-5 days with a message - We are there to take care of you and you need not to worry. Take care of your health.

• Afterwards, we gave regular payments to them which has helped us in ensuring any opportunities that we started at any point in time, runs smoothly

• To keep the labours physically high, various kinds of courses were started along with physical yoga training

• We were able to start our operations on time. Our co-plant started well before time, and was among the first few to start because of having taken required permissions from Central Government or State government to allow the cement industry also to act as interest of the industry and to permit them even before the lockdown was lifted and that has led to gain the moral of the people and people’s threat that we are able to reboot ourselves

• There are challenges with a lesser number of workers considering the first 33% allowability of workers in the plant and how that will be done with physical distancing. But, the way our team implemented that was remarkable

• All required precautions like checking temperatures at the gate, sanitizing the people, keeping physical distancing and virtually inspecting people etc. has helped us to start the plant well in time and the result is that we have been able to run plant efficiently 

• There may be some challenges when we run the plant with 100% capacity as to how we will take care of labours

• Another important aspect was how to remain connected with the customer. For that purpose, we started virtual programmes to connect with each and every customer almost on a daily basis

• During these 90 days, we were also sure that each and every dealer or customer was having sufficient money with them and based on the philosophy, we went on pursuing them also and we went on collecting money also. In the month of May, we also had collections because of which we are confident of having right customers as well as right sales team

• In terms of sales, it was first time that we virtually launched new konark bed otherwise, it used to be a physical activity and it was appreciated very well

• The business that we carried out in the month of April and May including June also, we lost sales from the time lockdown was announced and it also resulted in lower EBITDA of about Rs 145 crores  

• We all are aware of the uncertainty in FY21 and we all are in that uncertainty but at the same time with rebooting, we are confident that whatever possible uncertainties would come, our team would be able to create certainty out of it 

• On account of incentives, we were able to collect Rs 209 crores in FY20. In terms of our projects, I am happy to share that we were able to commence our Line 3 clinker plant and on that account now, we have sufficient clinker which would be used for any type of demand 

• Similarly, considering the expected demand, we have  inbuilt sufficient capacity for grinding. 

• Our two grinding units, one in Bengal and the other at Odisha were less impacted by this pandemic by migrant workers. At the moment considering the degrowth in cement demand in FY21, we have sufficient capacity to meet any demand

• We went through these 90 days in a very disciplined manner, humane manner, reaching out to all the families of the employees. We were very clear about people's safety, security and cash. It's very important to have the strategy of cash also because all of us would definitely want to understand why we borrowed some money in March when it was not required. But, the time was such that strategies had to change according to the time. 

• In February, we had paid a lot of debts seen in the last two years. We paid debts of Rs 2,600. In March, when we were settling down, we didn’t know how things will be or how it will evolve. It is very important for us as a team to convey to the entire team of Dalmia Bharat that we are together and even if things don’t work out for 6 months or a year, we are absolutely ready for any contingency whether it is statutory payment, loan repayment, salaries or fixed cost.

• We drew down about Rs 600 crores of additional in March and which has been carried as cash as of March balance sheet but as we speak today, some amount of cash flow has started coming in and we have started paying down that debt by Rs 300 crores

• We will evolve our strategies month by month depending on the current situation