Central airconditioning and commercial refrigeration major Blue Star has reported a Total Income of Rs 224.14 crores for the quarter ended December 31, 2004 representing a growth of 52.4% over the corresponding period last year. Net Profit for the quarter grew 55.4% to Rs 5.93 crores, while Earnings Per Share (EPS) increased to Rs 3.30 from Rs 2.12.

The Total Income for the nine months ended December 31, 2004 grew 34.8% to Rs 611.43 crores. Net Profit for the same period increased from Rs 12.04 crores to Rs 18.28 crores representing an increase of 51.9% over the same period last year. The cumulative EPS for nine months stood at Rs 10.16 as against Rs 6.69 last year.

The Company bagged several prestigious orders during the quarter including orders from Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, New Delhi; Times of India, Mumbai; Vascon Multiplex, Pune; RMZ Eco Space Building, Bangalore; DHL Worldwide Express, Mumbai; Sun Microsystems, Bangalore; HCL Technologies BPO Services, Chennai; Delhi High Court, New Delhi; Columbia Hospital, Bangalore; Altana Pharma, Mumbai; NTPC, Sipat and HSBC, Sri Lanka.

Ashok M Advani, Chairman & Chief Executive adds "The Indian economy has been growing at rapid pace and with the construction boom, investments in infrastructure projects, and growth in the services sector, the net profit as well as revenue growth of the Company have substantially improved in the nine month period ended December 31, 2004. The favourable macro economic conditions and the Company's strong fundamentals in the airconditioning, commercial refrigeration and professional electronics business will help in sustaining profitable growth in the future as well as further strengthen its leadership position."

It may be recalled that the Company had reported a Net Profit of Rs 32.55 crores on a Total Income of Rs 716.06 crores for the year ended March 31, 2004.

For additional information, please contact: N Sivasankaran, Vice President, Corporate Communications and Marketing, Blue Star Limited, Kasturi Buildings, Mohan T Advani Chowk, J Tata Road, Mumbai - 400 020, email: nsivasankaran@bluestarindia.com, Telephone: 56654000.