Cairn India stock down over 3% on highest-ever quarterly loss

The shares of Cairn India were trading down over 3% in early trade on the BSE after the company posted its biggest-ever quarterly loss in the last quarter of FY16.

The company's shares were trading at Rs 146.70, down Rs 4.70 or 3.10% lower on Monday.

Cairn India has reported its biggest quarterly loss of Rs 10,948 crore in the quarter-ended March 31 mainly because of impairment loss on goodwill and non-producing oil and gas assets due to drop in oil prices.

Net loss of Rs 10,948.22 crore in January-March compared with a net loss of Rs 240.82 crore in the same period a year ago, the company said in a statement.

"Due to decline in crude oil prices in the international market, the Group has recorded an impairment on the carrying value of goodwill and some of its non-producing oil and gas assets aggregating to Rs 11,389.63 crore and Rs 284.17 crore respectively," it said.

Cairn said the impairment of Rs 11,674 crore largely reflects the lower crude price, prevailing discount on oil produced from Rajasthan block as well as adverse long term impact of revised cess.

Production dipped 8% to 206,170 barrels of oil and oil equivalent gas in the fourth quarter of 2015-16. Its mainstay Rajasthan field produced 5% less oil at 164,826 barrels per day.

Turnover fell 36% to Rs 1717 crore on lower oil prices. The company realised an average of $27.8 per barrel for oil it produced in January-March, down 43% from $ 48.6 per barrel a year ago. Gas price realisation was however up 19% at $ 7.4 per million standard cubic feet.

(With agency inputs)