The net profit of the company has registered a fall of 20 per cent to Rs 569 crore during 1998-99 as against Rs 720 crore last year. BHEL chairman and managing director KG Ramachandran called the figures an aberration as the extraordinary income due to interest on income tax refund and withdrawal of excess provisions of income tax last year had increased the company's net profit by a substantial Rs 164 crore to Rs 720 crore.

Addressing a news conference here on Friday, Ramachandran said the net profit for the current year stands almost the same as last year's. Profit after tax, after excluding extraordinary income of Rs 164 crore during 1997-98, stood at Rs 940 crore. Compared to this, the company has recorded a profit of Rs 941 crore for 1998-99, he said.

He claimed that the financial performance of thecorporation had improved despite an economic slowdown. Profit after tax would have been two per cent higher if extraordinary income had been excluded in 1997-98.

Ramachandran said that corporation's turnover recorded an increase of about 4.5 per cent at Rs 6,765 crore and added that BHEL would start the financial year 1999-2000 with a book order of over Rs 10,000 crore.

"The above performance has been achieved despite operating in a highly competitive and subdued business environment, where industrial growth has been declining, plant and machinery sector showing negative growth," he said.

Ramachandran, however, said that prospects for capital goods sector were likely to remain bleak at least till January next, yet the corporation was hopeful of recording a `single' digit growth in profits and turnover.

In the power sector, the corporation had booked orders worth Rs 3,260 crore, including the 1,000mw Simhadri power project of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC). Ramachandran said that ordersworth Rs 4,000 crore were in the pipeline where BHEL was placed favourably.

The exports order inflow had also increased by over two and a half times to Rs 250 crore as against Rs 91 crore last year. In the industry sector, the corporation had booked orders worth Rs 2,304 crore during 1998-99 and growth in basic goods industry -- Bhel's target market for industrial products and systems -- fell to 1.4 per cent during April-December 1998 as against 6.5 per cent in 1997-98.

Ramachandran said that BHEL made a capital investment of Rs 119 crore on plan capital programme with focus on modernisation and replacement of ageing facilities for enhancing the competitiveness of products and services.

"In the new millennium BHEL is introducing a number of new products like three-phase traction electrics and advance class gas turbines in the Indian market," he said.

Apart from this the company was also planning to enter new business areas in integrated gassification combined cycle systems and coal washeries.

Thecompany was considering suitable organisational measures for improved business focus with the objective of increasing its competitive edge, he said.