Public sector companies spends Rs 50,200 crore on capex in April FY25

Public sector companies: Public sector companies in India collectively spent a little over Rs 50,200 crore on capital expenditure in April FY25, amounting to 6.46 per cent of their full fiscal target of Rs 7.77 lakh crore, an official revealed. This expenditure, however, is slightly lower compared to the Rs 54,177 crore spent in April FY24, which accounted for about 7.3 per cent of the full-year budget target of Rs 7.42 lakh crore.

"The capex spending will pick up going forward. Also, the numbers for April are still provisional and will go up in the revised final numbers," the official told PTI.

The capital expenditure in April FY25 was primarily driven by the railways, road, and oil and gas sectors. The Indian Railways and sector PSUs collectively spent Rs 26,641 crore in April, with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) spending Rs 6,645 crore. Among oil and gas sector PSUs, ONGC incurred a capex of Rs 2,318 crore, while Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) spent Rs 2,423 crore in the first month of the current financial year. Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd spent Rs 1,155 crore and Rs 417 crore, respectively, in April. Power sector PSU NTPC spent Rs 2,083 crore.

The finance ministry monitors the capital expenditure of public sector undertakings (PSUs), with an annual investment target of over Rs 100 crore. The Interim Budget for 2024–25 set a cumulative capital expenditure target of Rs 9.01 lakh crore for all PSUs, with Rs 7.77 lakh crore to be spent by PSUs with over Rs 100 crore of annual capital expenditure target. In 2023–24, large PSUs exceeded the budget target by spending Rs 8.05 lakh crore towards capex, surpassing the Rs 7.42 lakh crore target.

(With PTI inputs)