AI assistant
Godavari Biorefineries Limited Call Transcript 2026
61499_rns_2026-06-02_9de11a7d-1f47-4259-aaa0-9de0ece21077.pdf
Call Transcript
Open in viewerOpens in your device viewer
Godavari Biorefineries Ltd
Godavari Biorefineries Ltd
Dated: June 02, 2026
The Manager
Listing Department
National Stock Exchange of India Limited
Exchange Plaza, C-1, Block G,
Bandra Kurla Complex, Bandra (E),
Mumbai – 400 051
The Manager
Listing Department
BSE Limited
Phiroze Jeejeebhoy Tower,
Dalal Street
Mumbai-400001
Script Symbol: GODAVARIB
Script Code: 544279
Sub: Transcript of Investor/Analyst Conference Call held for discussion of financial performance of Q4 and FY 26
Pursuant to Regulation 30 of SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, we are pleased to forward herewith a link of the Transcript of Investor's/Analyst/Concall on financial results of the Company for the Q4 and FY 26 held on 26th May, 2026.
The same has been uploaded on the website of the Company at the link below
https://www.godavaribiorefineries.com/sites/default/files/Transcript_Q4_and_FY26.pdf
This is for your information and records.
Thanking you,
Yours faithfully
For Godavari Biorefineries Limited
Manoj Jain
MANOJ
JAIN
Digitally signed by
MANOJ JAIN
Date: 2026.06.02
12:13:20 +05'30'
Company Secretary & Compliance Officer
Membership No. F-7998
Regd. Office : Somaiya Bhavan, 45/47, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Fort, Mumbai - 400 001 INDIA.
Tel : (91-22) 2204 8272 / 6170 2100 Fax : (91-22) 2204 7297
Email ID : [email protected] www.godavaribiorefineries.com
CIN:L67120MH1956PLC009707
Somaiya
GROUP
"Godavari Biorefineries Limited
Q4 FY'26 Earnings Conference Call"
May 26, 2026
MANAGEMENT: MR. SAMIR SOMAIYA - CHAIRMAN AND MANAGING DIRECTOR - GODAVARI BIOREFINERIES LIMITED MR. ASHISH SINHA - ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER, INVESTOR RELATIONS AND FINANCE - GODAVARI BIOREFINERIES LIMITED
MODERATOR: Ms. PRACHI AMBRE - MUFG INTIME INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED
Godavari
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
Moderator:
Ladies and gentlemen, good day and welcome to Godavari Biorefineries Limited Q4 FY26 Earnings Conference Call. As a reminder, all participant lines will be in the listen-only mode and there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions after the presentation concludes. Should you need assistance during the conference call, please signal an operator by pressing star then zero on your touchtone phone. Please note this conference is being recorded.
I now hand the conference over to Ms. Prachi Ambre from MUFG Intime. Thank you and over to you, ma'am.
Prachi Ambre:
Thank you, Steve. Good morning everyone and welcome to Godavari Biorefineries Limited Q4 and FY26 earnings conference call. Today on the call, we have Mr. Samir Somaiya, Chairman and Managing Director; Mr. Ashish Sinha, Assistant General Manager, Investor Relations and Finance, to provide insights on the operational and financial performance.
Before we begin the call, I would like to give a short disclaimer. This call may contain some of the forward-looking statements, which are completely based upon our beliefs and expectations as of today. The statements are not a guarantee of our future performance and involve unforeseen risks and uncertainties.
With this, I would like to hand over the call to Samir sir for his opening remarks. Over to you, sir. Thank you.
Samir Somaiya:
Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today for the Q4 and FY26 earnings call of Godavari Biorefineries Limited. We appreciate your continued trust, engagement, and interest in our company. At Godavari Biorefineries, we have always believed that business must create value. Guided by our purpose of creating a beautiful world, we remain committed to building a cleaner, more sustainable, and self-reliant future.
At the outset, let me briefly set the broader global context. Ongoing geopolitical developments, particularly in West Asia, have led to increased volatility in fossil fuel supply chains, energy markets, and global trade flows. This current reality demonstrates what a fossil-starved world would look like in the future and therefore, even furthers our resolve of creating a bio-based beautiful world.
This uncertainty is accelerating a structural shift towards sustainable and bio-based alternatives as industries increasingly prioritize reliability, resilience, and environmental responsibility. In parallel, the transition towards renewable and bio-based chemistry continues to gain momentum. Rising fuel costs and steps to increase ethanol blending targets reinforce our belief that renewable solutions are no longer optional but essential. This strengthens our long-term vision of transitioning from oil to soil and positions us well as an integrated biorefinery.
The regulatory environment also remains supportive. The Government of India continues to push the ethanol blending program and has issued draft standards for blending beyond E20, creating a stronger demand outlook. In line with this, we are progressing well on our 200 KLPD grain-based distillery, expected to commission by June 2026, adding approximately 60 million liters of annual ethanol capacity.
Page 2 of 14
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
The FY26 has been a year of steady progress and resilience for Godavari Biorefineries. In spite of the challenging external environment, we have delivered a turnaround in profitability, strengthened our balance sheet, and continued to advance our strategic priorities.
Against this backdrop, we delivered a resilient performance during the quarter and the full year. For the full year, total income stood at INR2,000 crores, up 6% year-on-year, while EBITDA grew 15.8% to INR139 crores, with margins stabilizing at 7%. Importantly, we reported a positive profit after tax of INR3.5 crores compared to a loss in FY 2025, despite certain exceptional factors during the year.
In Q4, revenue from operations stood at INR564 crores with an EBITDA of INR92 crores and a margin of 16%, reflecting a strong sequential recovery supported by improved sugar operations during the peak crushing season. The performance was supported by disciplined execution, improved efficiencies, and continued focus on strengthening our balance sheet, reflecting in a 32% reduction in finance costs to INR49 crores following debt repayment of INR240 crores in FY 2025.
Operationally, Q4 reflected strong execution. During the 2025-2026 crushing season, we achieved our highest ever cane crushing of 2.5 million tons. Our integrated bagasse-based energy platform continues to provide us with cost and sustainability advantage, enhancing efficiency and stability across the operations. The sugar business benefited from higher volumes, improved recoveries, and strong export execution, supporting performance despite a challenging margin environment.
Our bio-based chemical segment continues to progress in line with our strategy of increasing specialty production. For FY26, segment revenue stood at INR578 crores, supported by improved contribution from specialty chemicals. While geopolitical disruptions impacted sales, our competitiveness continues to improve through debottlenecking, process optimization, and innovation-led development, including the successful enhancement of our ethyl acetate operations.
In the ethanol business, we delivered steady growth despite pricing pressures. Revenue for FY26 stood at INR658 crores, supported by improved feedstock availability, particularly B-heavy molasses. During the year, we have sold approximately 98 million liters of ethanol, equivalent across the ethanol blending program, ENA, and other grades.
Our multi-feedstock and multi-product approach remains key to enhancing flexibility and reducing risk. Our consumer business Jivana continues to gain strong traction and is emerging as an important growth driver. Revenue for FY26 stood at INR129 crores, with a strong growth story and expanding retail presence across South India, reflecting increasing consumer preference for natural and sustainable products.
From a strategic standpoint, our priorities remain clear. We are focused on expanding specialty chemicals to improve margins, strengthening our ethanol platform, and scaling our consumer business to build a more diversified and resilient model, while continuing to invest in R&D, technology, and sustainability.
Page 3 of 14
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
We are also strengthening our innovation capabilities, including expanding our global research footprint to support future-ready solutions. Everything we do begins with the sun, the soil and the small farmer.
Through our regenerative agriculture initiatives, we are restoring soil health and improving farm resilience and empowering farmers across our network, while reducing reliance on fossil-based inputs. At the same time, we continue to build capabilities in high-value innovation, including advancing our oral therapy candidate for triple-negative breast cancer and strengthening our antiviral platform with a recently secured Japanese patent. These efforts reflect our commitment to combining sustainability with science-led innovation.
Looking ahead, we are excited about emerging opportunities in areas such as bio-butanol, DME, and next-generation renewable technologies, which align with our long-term vision of building a sustainable and innovation-led business. We are proud of the recognitions received during the year, including the Karnataka State Boiler Safety Award for our Sameerwadi plant, the Sustainability Champion Award at the AIDA Annual Distillers Conclave 2026, and recognition at the Hannover Messe for our digital initiatives.
In addition, our participation in platforms such as ChemExpo India and in-cosmetics Global has strengthened our positioning as a reliable supplier of sustainable chemical solutions. In conclusion, FY26 has been a year of resilience, recovery, and strategic progress. We have strengthened our fundamentals, improved profitability, and built a stronger platform for future growth. We remain committed to creating long-term value for all stakeholders, guided by our belief that growth must be sustainable, responsible, and inclusive.
With that, I would like to now hand over the call to Mr. Ashish Sinha, who will take you through the financial performance in greater detail.
Ashish Sinha:
Good morning, everyone. Let me take you through the key financial highlights, focusing on our operational efficiency. For the FY26, the total income stood at INR2,000.2 crores, reflecting a growth of 6% Y-o-Y from INR1,886.9 crores. EBITDA expanded significantly by 15.8% to INR139.3 crores compared to INR120.3 crores last year, showing strong operational leverage over the 12-month period.
EBITDA margin for the year stabilizing at around 7%. While margins remained under pressure during parts of the year due to elevated feedstock cost, the second half saw gradual improvement driven by operational efficiency and better product mix.
From a segmental perspective, during the year, the integrated sugar, ethanol, and co-generation business together reported revenues of approximately INR1,383 crores and EBITDA at INR97.4 crores, increased by 19% Y-o-Y. The bio-based chemical segment performance improved with an increase in percentage of specialty chemical to 61% compared to 58% Y-o-Y against total revenue from bio-based chemicals.
There has been a significant improvement in our capital structure. Finance cost reduced to INR49.1 crores, down approximately 32% Y-o-Y, supported by debt repayment of INR240
Page 4 of 14
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
crores during the year FY 2025. As a result, finance cost as a percentage of revenue declined meaningfully, improving overall profitability and strengthening our balance sheet.
We reported a profit after tax of INR3.5 crores compared to a loss in FY 2025. Quarter 4 FY26 reflected a strong recovery in operational performance. Revenue from operation for the quarter stood at INR564 crores and EBITDA at INR92 crores, translating into EBITDA margin of 16.2%.
From a segmental perspective, the integrated sugar, ethanol, and co-generation business together reported revenues of approximately INR411 crores during the quarter, with a meaningful improvement in margins driven by higher crushing volumes and better recovery rates. The bio-based chemical segment reported revenues of around INR147 crores.
On a quarter-on-quarter performance improved significantly, EBITDA more than doubled compared to quarter 3 FY26, with margin expanding from 9.8% to 16.2%. This improvement was primarily driven by better absorption of fixed cost, higher operating efficiency in sugar segment, and improved realizations across key product categories during the quarter.
Profit after tax for the quarter stood at INR52.9 crores, reflecting a strong recovery from INR8.3 crores reported in quarter 3 FY26. This improvement was largely driven by operating performance, indicating a healthy underlying business momentum.
Overall, both the quarter and the full year reflect improving operational momentum, strong cost discipline, and better capital efficiency. This provides a solid foundation as we enter FY27 with improved balance sheet strength and operating leverage.
Thank you. We can now open the floor for questions.
Moderator:
Thank you. We will now begin the question-and-answer session. The first question comes from the line of Soumya Raghuvanshi with Nirva Capital. Please go ahead. Soumya, your line has been unmuted. Please go ahead with your question. As there is no response, we'll move on to the next question. It's from the line of Nilay Kulkarni with Narad AI. Please go ahead.
Nilay Kulkarni:
Hello. Congrats on the record-breaking sugar crushing season and you know, I've been going through some of the reports. One thing that struck me is in the bio-based segment, the contribution of specialty chemicals seems to have shrunk actually from I think INR40 crores...
Samir Somaiya:
Yes. We can hear you. We can hear you, Nilay.
Nilay Kulkarni:
Hello.
Samir Somaiya:
Nilay, we can hear you.
Nilay Kulkarni:
Okay. Yes. So sorry. Could I get some understanding on the path to, you know, specialty chemicals in general? I'm really excited about how we are moving away from reliance on ethanol, et cetera. So that's one. And you know, if we could get some updates on the distillery as well, that would be great. Thank you.
Page 5 of 14
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
Samir Somaiya:
So, thank you for the question. Let me give you a context of what is happening currently in the world of bio-based chemicals. The West Asia crisis suddenly transports us into the future when we see a world in which fossil resources are scarce, and that environment is currently real for us. So that is now resulting in two or three aspects.
One is the Government of India is looking at further means of bringing us to be a greater self-reliant in energy, that is at one point. And the second is how customers are looking for reliability in their supply chains.
I'll go one step further. We are also finding that imports into India are becoming more expensive. And also, if you look at export markets, energy costs have increased globally everywhere. Now what is happening in our model, our energy is about 85% from bagasse as a fuel and about 15% from coal. These costs of energy have more or less remained stable.
Ethanol itself also is the main raw material -- primary raw material for our chemicals that we make, which we sell either locally or overseas. Further, it is going to be coinciding with the commissioning, soon to be commissioned ethanol distillery capacity expansion. With all these factors taken together, we are seeing a much stronger environment for an integrated biorefinery platform for bio-based chemicals to grow in India and overseas.
So, we are definitely seeing a stronger outlook in this financial year and this will be apparent from in the -- from this quarter onwards, that's the first point. As far as the distillery is concerned, we are going to be doing our commissioning trials next month for the grain-based facility. Did I answer your questions, Nilay?
Nilay Kulkarni:
Yes, but I mean -- so do you think that, you know, this year during the next few quarters we would see the revenue mix kind of meaningfully shifting to because to be honest, you know, the FY25 revenue mix and '26 revenue mix are nearly identical and you know, the bio-based thing remains at a firm 29%. So, I mean, I just wanted to get an understanding on that.
Samir Somaiya:
So, we did a fair amount of debottlenecking of our bio-based chemicals last year. It took us a little longer to penetrate markets globally and in India. With the new, -- well I say the -- with the current geopolitical environment, we are -- and the competitiveness of the bio-based platform, we are now finding that market penetration to take place in this financial year beginning with this quarter onwards. So definitely you will see a stronger -- the debottlenecking that we did last year will start showing its results in this financial year.
Nilay Kulkarni:
Understood. Just a small tack-on, if we could, you know, for say cosmetic products like 1,3 Butylene Glycol, et cetera., if I -- if we could get a sense of, you know, the uptake that we might be seeing because, you know, those are higher margin products, et cetera. I mean, recently we did the in-cosmetics Global as well. So, if there -- if you could say a bit more about what, you know, seems to be the landscape there?
Samir Somaiya:
So, you know, we make a fair number, more than 20 chemicals from the bio-based sector. Across the board, there are some which are doing better and some which may do the same or less. Overall, I would like to say that under the current situation where the gap between the fossil
Page 6 of 14
Godavari
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
prices being much higher, the gap between fossil and renewable has narrowed. So overall, the business of bio-based chemicals shows greater promise in the current environment.
Nilay Kulkarni:
Understood. Thank you.
Moderator:
Thank you. Participants, if you wish to ask a question, you may press star and 1. The next question comes from the line of Suhani Singh with Teja Capital. Please go ahead.
Suhani Singh:
Hi. Good morning. So, I just wanted to ask if you could provide an update on the bio-based chemicals segment, particularly in the light of challenges this quarter, and share how demand trends and overall business conditions are shaping up now?
Samir Somaiya:
Thank you, Suhani. You know, as I mentioned just right now, the bio-based chemicals market for Godavari are right now showing a stronger outlook. The fundamental causes for that are that in we compete in let's say 2 places. One is in India with imports into India and overseas in markets which we have competition from global competitors. With energy, feedstock, and raw material costs getting higher because of the current geopolitical tension and our model, primarily looking at bagasse as an energy and ethanol as a feedstock remaining similar, our competitiveness in global markets is there, so we are seeing a broader outlook.
Imports into India are also more expensive right now, so we are once again finding an ability to show penetrate the markets for our bio-based chemicals based on the debottlenecking that we did last year much better this year. So that's a stronger outlook.
You talked about the water. In last year was a very good monsoon. So as far as the current state is concerned, the dams based on the water that India received last year were good and the crop around peninsular India where we are has not suffered for lack of water. We, of course, will be looking with always expectations as to how the coming monsoons will be to make sure that the climate continues to be positive.
Suhani Singh:
Understood, sir. If you could tell me what is the expected timeline for out-licensing the TNBC molecule? And specifically at what stage of early clinical development, you anticipate initiating partnering discussions and what milestones would trigger a formal out-licensing process?
Samir Somaiya:
Thank you for your question. We created a step-down subsidiary called Sathgen Therapeutics. The idea of creating that step-down subsidiary was to be able to present the work we do in the U.S. and the world markets with people who are specialized in communicating the story of drug discovery with particular reference to our triple-negative breast cancer drug discovery into this out-licensing pharmaceutical world. So that is at one level.
Parallel to that, we have completed safety trials for our molecule and now we are preparing the application to the CDSCO for research in preliminary efficacy. This trials we should be -- the application we will make in the next quarter and then we will -- once we receive approval, we will commence trials.
Page 7 of 14
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
The process of talking to pharmaceutical possible potential out-licensees and the trial will happen in parallel. We cannot predict when that will happen, but provided that we continue to be successful, we hope for a timeframe of 2 to 3 years.
Suhani Singh: Understood, sir. One last question. While the West Asia crisis has created opportunities, did it also lead to higher logistics, freight, or raw material volatility during Q4, particularly impacting the specialty segment, chemical segment margins?
Samir Somaiya: What was the question? Were you stating something? Or were you asking a question? I'm sorry for asking you.
Suhani Singh: So, I'll just repeat again. So, while the West Asia crisis has created opportunities, did it also lead to higher logistics, freight, or raw material volatility during Q4?
Samir Somaiya: Yes, ma'am. That is correct. The West Asia crisis has also created some supply issues for some of our raw materials and has also increased freight costs. So, we make, as I said, more than about 20 molecules in the bio-based chemicals that we make. So, some of these have faced challenges and some of these we are seeing opportunities. So, we might have seen the challenges in the last quarter and we are also now seeing how to react to those challenges and how to see how we can rise to meet the opportunities that they have created.
Suhani Singh: Was it particularly impacting the Specialty Chemicals segment?
Samir Somaiya: When there is a disruption, it would affect, I would say, the entire segment. And now we are understanding how to deal with that situation, and we will see. So, it did definitely the logistics affected the Chemicals segment.
Suhani Singh: Got that. Thank you very much.
Moderator: Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Apurva Anil Sharma with Raas Capital. Please go ahead.
Apurva Anil Sharma: Hi, sir. I'm sorry if this question might have been asked, but so my question was regarding the grain distillery. The catalyst has now been guided for Q1 FY27 for 3 quarters and equipment was due in April-March 2026. So, my question was has it arrived and installation underway? And separately, maize-based ethanol is frozen since ESY 2024 while maize stays near MSP. So, what gross spreads are you actually underwriting on the 60 million liters? Or could this asset commission into a margin squeeze?
Samir Somaiya: Can you repeat the question? I heard part of it. Your first question was talking about commissioning, I guess, and the second looked at the margins. Am I right? Can I just repeat it?
Apurva Anil Sharma: Yes, I can repeat it. So, the grain distillery has now been guided for next quarter, I mean for this quarter Q1 FY27. So, has the equipment installed and arrived physically? And separate regarding the maize-based ethanol prices, that...
Samir Somaiya: So, the first question one is that the, you know, 9 -- I don't -- I won't put a number, but almost all the equipment is on site. There may be, you know, 1 or 2 things here and there which is still
Page 8 of 14
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
being awaited, but most of the plant is erected and we are targeting commissioning trials next month. So, does that answer the first question?
Apurva Anil Sharma:
Yes, sir. Yes.
Samir Somaiya:
The second question is that we will be commissioning -- as we say, we're targeting commissioning in this next month and we will have the -- currently, the government has announced prices for maize-based ethanol and we will be buying maize to make the ethanol into the blending program. We will, of course, the larger benefits will come of this facility in the coming ethanol year from November onwards.
In the meantime, we could also be looking at the ethanol that we produce to meet our needs for our bio-based chemicals facility because imports of ethanol have become more expensive in the West Asia crisis. So, we are also looking at our integrated platform going from as we say soil all the way to chemicals and see how we can use also our ethanol surpluses to meet our own demand.
Apurva Anil Sharma:
Okay, sir. Got it. And just another quick question from my end. Was it actually a deliberate choice to run more ethyl acetate for better near-term margin? Or did something happen in the specialty volume customers that we could replace? Or I just wanted to understand on the specialty mix drop.
Samir Somaiya:
I would say that our larger strategic objective is to continue to make more bio-based specialty chemicals. So that is our, what I will say, long-term strategic objective. At the same time, if we do see an opportunity in ethyl acetate margins with our ethanol production, we are large producers of ethanol, and if we see an opportunity in utilizing that ethanol into making ethyl acetate at a margin, particularly since you see in the current year, ethanol blending program supply is much greater than demand. So, we are just being smart about it.
If you see an opportunity, you're long in ethanol, then we will make the ethyl acetate to make the margin. So strategic objective of bio-based specialty chemicals remain and if there is an opportunity to do ethyl acetate business if margins are there, we will do that.
Apurva Anil Sharma:
Okay, sir. Thank you.
Moderator:
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Kranthi Bathini with WealthMills Securities. Please go ahead.
Kranthi Bathini:
Yes. Hi, sir. Congratulations for the resilient quarter and set of numbers. With respect to the global crude oil prices, the energy prices, they have been so much volatile. We witnessed the crude oil swinging between $110-$120 and again back to $90. So, these, kind of, swings, the volatility -- the heightened volatility in the crude oil prices, how much benefit the Godavari Biorefineries is -- what is your net realization with respect to ethanol is concerned?
Samir Somaiya:
Can you repeat the question on the volatility on crude oil prices? Because...
Page 9 of 14
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
Kranthi Bathini:
Yes. The crude oil prices have been volatile swinging between $90 – at present, a week back it was around $110-$120 dollars per barrel. So, these kind of volatility, how Godavari Bio is positioned to take the advantage in the medium to short-term?
Samir Somaiya:
So, you know, when the oil prices increase, then they are making broad -- our energy prices come fundamentally from coal and bagasse and bagasse being about 85% of that. So, when we compete in the market with our energy cost remaining where they are, or even our raw materials are primarily ethanol, we compete in the world with people who have fossil resources. So, it just helps us to be a little more competitive in the current environment.
Secondly, it is also driving the Government of India to examine how they could look at ethanol blending beyond the E20. If you look, they have also notified draft standards of E85 and E100 and beyond E20. So, you are looking at a larger ethanol blend as we go forward and that would create a greater demand in the future.
You know, we should remember that the earlier E20 target was for 2030. We achieved it as a nation by five years in advance. So, the government must also be given time to look at what new policies it should put in place given this surplus of ethanol in the country. This energy crisis has only further I would say strengthened the resolve of the government and the country to be more self-reliant in energy. So, it puts positions us in a strong place both in the bio-based chemical space as well as in the ethanol space.
Kranthi Bathini:
How you're foreseeing the demand for ethanol, sir, in the medium to short-term?
Samir Somaiya:
Sir, the medium to short-term, the government, I repeat what they were -- they are trying notifying higher blends of ethanol, draft standards have been notified. So, the government will have to articulate a policy of what they see in the years to come. It will also reflect on what are the policies to encourage flex-fuel cars because it will be those cars that will be able to take the higher ethanol blend rates.
So, but the direction is clear. If the government is announcing E85 and E100 blend standards, then in the future this would come into the market and it would have to be together with the flex-fuel cars in the country. So that is one. Secondly, we are also a integrated biorefinery. So, our own ethanol can feed our growing demand for ethanol to make chemicals.
Kranthi Bathini:
What is your current net realization on ethanol, sir? Could you give some figure on that?
Samir Somaiya:
Sir, ethanol prices are declared by the government. They have prices for B-heavy molasses to ethanol, they have juice to ethanol, and they have grain to ethanol. It's all declared. It's a -- it's one price for the anybody in the country. I mean, one means, on price for each feedstock.
Kranthi Bathini:
What is your net realization, sir, gross margin for ethanol at present?
Samir Somaiya:
Sir, the net realization from B-molasses, I think, it is about 60-plus. At juice to ethanol, it is about 65-plus and for maize to ethanol it is around 72.
Kranthi Bathini:
Okay, sir. Thank you.
Page 10 of 14
Godavari
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
Moderator:
Thank you. The next question comes from the line of Soumya Raghuvanshi with Nirva Capital. Please go ahead. Ms. Soumya, you line has been unmuted. Please go ahead with your question.
Soumya Raghuvanshi:
I'm so sorry. Good morning, sir. Thank you so much for taking my question. Can you please discuss on your expectations around the ethanol price revision, specifically what timeline you foresee for regulatory action, the magnitude of revision that would be meaningful for the industry, and how such changes could impact your cost structure, blending economics, and overall margin trajectory in the near term?
Samir Somaiya:
Thank you for the question. The answer, I am not sure I can have for you. The price revisions for ethanol are a subject matter for the Government of India to decide. The industry has requested the government to increase the ethanol blend pricing in light of continuous increase of sugarcane price over the past 3 years and no corresponding change in the ethanol price coming from either B-molasses or sugarcane juice or syrup.
At the same time, the directionality of improving demand is there with the issuance of draft standards for E85 and E100. When that happens, automatically today there is a supply surplus of ethanol, and once greater demand is created, we should find both the demand also to increase.
In light of the West Asia crisis and higher energy prices, which we now see translating into higher prices at the pump, creating a system in which we are more self-reliant in energy coming from the sun and our soil and the farming community that we have in the country, we definitely believe that the government should do policy measures to help the economical viability in the country.
Soumya Raghuvanshi:
Okay, sir. Noted. Sir, can you please update on the DME project converting carbon dioxide and hydrogen? What stage has the pilot currently reached, and what key technological milestones such as catalyst performance and scale-up feasibility, along with economic milestones like cost competitiveness, regulatory clearance, and off-take agreements must be achieved before commercialization?
Samir Somaiya:
Ma'am, this is still too early. What to refresh our memory, first this was done in the pilot -- in a laboratory plant at the Institute of Chemical Technology. That was complete. Then we put up the pilot plant. We are currently in the process of running this pilot plant and trying to see how it would function. The process of research on the pilot plant should take a process of another 3 to 6 months. At the end of it, we will be able to give a better answer to the questions you are asking.
Soumya Raghuvanshi:
Okay, sir. Sir, just one last question. Management highlighted that multi-feedstock flexibility as a key differentiator. Can you please quantify the cost advantage or margin protection achieved through feedstock diversification during FY '26?
Samir Somaiya:
No, ma'am. This multi-feedstock will happen once the maize facility is in place, which will be - commissioning trials will happen next month. So, you will see the benefit of that business model going forward. It helps mitigate climate risk, policy risk, and feedstock risk. So, these are the risks we deal with.
Godavari
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
In terms of multi-product, what we had said is we make ethanol of various grades. So, we make ethanol for the blending program, we make ethanol of the ENA grade, and we make ethanol for other grades. So, in this past year, we made ethanol of about -- equivalent ethanol of 98 million liters, and of that, some of the ethanol we made also went into the ENA market and also other grades.
So, when you had a supply surplus, having this multiple product possibility helped us run the capacity of our distillery. That was the point. So, you look at it from both ends, multi-product to run it and multi-feedstock once it is operational for climate policy and feedstock risk.
Soumya Raghuvanshi: Okay, sir. Got that. That's it from my side. Thank you so much.
Moderator: Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, if you wish to ask a question, you may press star and 1. The next question comes from the line of Pehal Sharma with DB Capital. Please go ahead.
Pehal Sharma: Hello. Hi. Good morning.
Samir Somaiya: Good morning.
Pehal Sharma: Yes. So, I wanted to ask that global customers are increasingly shifting towards bio-based solutions, right? So, are you seeing long-term contracts or strategic sourcing partnerships, you know, like which is emerging with multinational customers, especially in Europe and U.S.?
Samir Somaiya: Thank you for the question. So, Godavari in its strategy actively co-creates with customers globally to find bio-based solutions, substitutes or supplements to what is otherwise bought in the fossil market. What we are definitely seeing is a gap narrowing between what would be higher bio-based prices versus lower fossil prices. This gap is narrowing. As a result of that, we are finding that there is definitely a possibility of increase in demand in this financial year.
Secondly, we also make chemicals in segments which are such as cosmetics or fragrances in which bio-based solutions have a natural advantage. So given that our cost structure has largely remained the same, which is with our feedstock of ethanol or with bagasse-based energy or with a little bit of coal-based energy that we produce, we are also finding our competitiveness much stronger and also they find it more competitive to buy from India at this current moment. So, we are definitely seeing an uptick in demand this financial year.
Pehal Sharma: Great. Great. That helps. One more question that ethanol equivalent sales reached 98 million liters in FY26 with 81% contributed under the EBP program. So as industrial usage and export opportunities expand, does management anticipate a material shift in this mix going forward? And like how might the balance between EBP, industrial, and export channel evolve over the medium term?
Samir Somaiya: We see the EBP program as the main outlet of our ethanol production. The other grades of for ENA or for other grades of ethanol which go into various segments, that could be in the pharma segment, it could be in the cosmetic or fragrance segment, or it could be also supplying to the ethanol need that Sakarwadi, but ethanol blending program continues to be our focus for growth as the government continues to target more self-reliance of energy in the country.
Page 12 of 14
Godavari
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
Pehal Sharma:
Understood.
Samir Somaiya:
But the point being that we want to make sure that we have the resilience to react to demand-supply gaps. If supply is in surplus, we are able to run our facilities at capacity.
Pehal Sharma:
Okay. Understood. Understood, sir. And one more last question. That the company plans to commission the 200 KLPD grain-based distillery by June 2026, right? So, adding 60 million liters of annual capacity. What is the expected capex asset turns and EBITDA potential from this project at normalized utilization levels?
Samir Somaiya:
Ma'am, we will commission this facility, the trials of commissioning will start taking place in June and there is some business that we will do in the coming quarter, which is in Q2. And after that, it will also depend on the government ethanol blending program and its targets and prices for the particular sector, which they will probably announce by sometime around September or October of 2026. At that time, we will be in a better position to state how that looks. Whilst of course, be looking at what the monsoons are like to understand how the crop will be and the pricing of the feedstock.
Pehal Sharma:
Okay. Okay. Thank you so much and all the best.
Samir Somaiya:
Thank you.
Moderator:
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, due to time constraint, this will be our last question. It's from the line of V. Rangan, an individual investor. Please go ahead.
V. Rangan:
Good afternoon, sir.
Samir Somaiya:
Good afternoon.
V. Rangan:
Can you state why our profitability has fallen from the INR95 crores in the last 31st March 2025 to INR66 crores in the current quarter 31st March 2026? And how much will be the current year expansion will be there and what will be our profitability in a years to the quarters coming? It will be on the line of INR25 crores or something like that? Can you some -- throw some light about that? Thanks.
Samir Somaiya:
So, what I would like to say is that the margin pressure took place because the government had announced a increased price of sugarcane for the last crushing season and did not increase the MSP of sugar and neither did they increase the price of the ethanol blend. So that created margin pressure in the business.
Going forward, we are looking at better business in the bio-based chemical sector as well as the commissioning of the maize-based ethanol will also lead to an addition of profitability in the coming year. So, this is how we see it going forward.
Moderator:
Thank you, sir. Ladies and gentlemen, that was the last question for today. I now hand the conference over to Samir, sir for closing comments.
Page 13 of 14
Godavari
Godavari Biorefineries Limited
May 26, 2026
Samir Somaiya:
Thank you very much all for coming and taking the time to attend our conference today and thank you for continuing to place your trust in our company as we grow to build a more sustainable, beautiful, and inclusive world. Thank you very much.
Moderator:
Thank you. On behalf of MUFG Intime, that concludes this conference. Thank you for joining us and you may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.
Page 14 of 14