Adani Power on Thursday said its consolidated net profit jumped manifold to Rs 2,228.05 crore in the quarter ended September 30, mainly on account of improved income. The company had clocked a net profit of Rs 3.88 crore in the year-ago period, Adani Power Ltd (APL) said in a regulatory filing.

Total income in the quarter also rose to Rs 8,792.28 crore from Rs 6,815.22 crore a year ago. Total expenses reduced to Rs 5,898.35 crore from Rs 6,658.44 crore in the year-ago period.

The Indian economy has started to demonstrate its resilience and diehard spirit, as the impact of COVID-19 wanes and the nation moves towards normalcy. "Energy in all forms and power from all sources will act as a key enabler to achieve the dream of economic prosperity for India's vast population. The Group remains committed to sustainable growth of the energy infrastructure, and becoming a key contributor to the nation's economic progress," Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani said in a statement.

Adani Power Managing Director Anil Sardana said the country's power demand has started showing strong improvement with revival of its economic growth engine, after the slump brought by the pandemic.

"We have a strong belief in the essentiality of conventional power and its compatibility with the renewable growth imperative. With our complementarity with the Adani Group's energy mix portfolio and partnerships in natural gas and solar energy, we will continue to seize value accretive opportunities and pursue our long-term growth strategies," he said.

The company further said during the quarter, APL and its subsidiaries achieved an average plant load factor (PLF) of 49.9 percent and sales volume of 12.6 Billion Units (BU), as compared to a PLF of 59.2 percent and sales volume of 14.5 BU recorded in the second quarter of 2019-20.

This lower performance was primarily a result of "customer back-downs" in Maharashtra and a subdued merchant market, partially offset by higher grid demand and improved coal availability in Rajasthan, as well as full quarter utilization of the recently acquired power plants in Chhattisgarh.

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"The Supreme Court, vide its order dated August 31, 2020, partially allowed claims of Adani Power Rajasthan Ltd, APL's wholly-owned subsidiary, to recover compensatory tariff from Rajasthan DISCOMs as per the order of the Appellate Tribunal Of Electricity (APTEL) dated September 14, 2019. However, Rajasthan DISCOMs have filed a review petition in the Supreme Court.

"Further, APTEL has also allowed, vide its order dated 5th October 2020, appeal by Adani Power Maharashtra Ltd. (APML), APL's wholly-owned subsidiary, against an order of the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) regarding coal shortfall compensation due to de-allocation of the Lohara coal block, along with carrying cost," the company said.