· Will not affect execution of the existing
order book
·
Company/Concessionaire is evaluating legal remedies in the matter
Mumbai: Shares of PNC Infratech Ltd (NSE: PNCINFRA) fell 20% intraday on Tuesday
after the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) levied a three-year
debarment on Awadh Expressway Pvt. Ltd., a concessionaire SPV of the company,
to PNC Infratech, restricting PNC from bidding for new MoRTH/NHAI projects for
the next three years. The company, however, clarified that the action will not
impact ongoing projects and said it is exploring legal remedies against the
order, adding that any financial implications will be disclosed as clarity
emerges.
While the debarment restricts PNC's ability to bid for new
NHAI/MoRTH contracts for three years, the company's substantial existing order
book remains unaffected. Additionally, the company’s expanding presence in
non-road segments (mining, water, airports, railways, canals) and early
diversification into solar/BESS further strengthens the Company’s presence
across infrastructure sectors beyond its traditional roads business.
PNC Infratech exited FY26 with an unexecuted order book of Rs
19,100 crore, translating to a book-to-bill ratio of nearly 4x providing
multi-year revenue visibility that is largely insulated from the debarment,
since existing contracts and concessions are unaffected by a bar on future
bidding. The order book stood as of 30th June’26 stood at Rs 15,670
crore across 27 projects, spanning Roads-EPC (Rs 5,148 cr), Roads-HAM (Rs 3,684
cr), Mining (Rs 2,847 cr), Water- Jal Jeevan Mission- (Rs 2,310 cr), Canal (Rs 732
cr), Airports (Rs 551 cr) and Railways (Rs 397 cr); a mix that keeps the
company well diversified beyond the NHAI/MoRTH road ecosystem. NHAI projects
constitute only around 30% of the Company’s total order book.
The company has, over the past few quarters, been steadily
diversifying its revenue beyond the roads portfolio. In mining, PNC is
executing a Rs 2,957 crore, five-year contract awarded by South Eastern
Coalfields Ltd. (SECL),. The company is also expanding into renewable energy,
having secured an order from NHPC Limited for a 300 MW ISTS-connected solar
power project paired with a 150 MW / 600 MWh battery energy storage system
(BESS) with the project expected to start contributing to revenue from FY27.
Combined, the mining and solar-BESS portfolios represent close to Rs 5000 crore
of diversification outside the traditional roads business.
Even within roads, PNC's order book is not solely reliant on
NHAI but is spread across multiple central and state authorities. Other
awarding authorities include the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation
(MSRDC), the Bihar State Road Development Corporation (BSRDC), state public
works departments, the Airports Authority of India (AAI), and state water and
irrigation departments, further reducing the concentration risk.
PNC has already secured five new projects in FY27 worth a
combined Rs 4,259 crore, including two HAM projects from NHAI
(Barabanki–Mustafabad and Mustafabad–Biswariya, Rs 1,728 cr and Rs 1,755 cr
respectively) and EPC awards from AAI (Pantnagar Airport, Rs 302 cr) and other
authorities (Lucknow Development Authority flyover, Rs 194 cr; Ganga River
Bridge JV, Rs 559 cr).
Recently, PNC Infratech reported an improvement in its Q1
FY27 numbers, with standalone revenue rising 34% year-on-year to Rs 1,518
crore. EBITDA grew 167% to Rs 375 crore, taking margins up by about 1,230 basis
points to 24.7%, while profit after tax increased 235% to Rs 271 crore.
The company's balance sheet remained strong, with standalone
debt-to-equity at 0.15 times as of June 2026. Rating agency CARE reaffirmed its
long-term rating at AA+ with a Stable outlook and its short-term rating at A1+,
while a few project-level SPVs were upgraded during the quarter. Net working
capital days stood at around 110, broadly steady from previous quarters.