Dear Shareholders,
The last year has been a challenging, exciting and a roller-coaster
ride. I would firstly like to thank you and congratulate our entire team for putting in
the hard yard & successfully conquering the aspired milestones.
The post-pandemic scenario has taught us many lessons, the most
important ones being ability to adapt, ability to work out of our comfort zone and
the ability to think out of the box. The last two years, not only did we adapt to the
uncertainties the headwinds and tailwinds that followed but it made us
resilient to changing scenarios.
ECONOMIC LANDSCAPE
The Indian economy has stood ground in 2022-23, despite global
geo-political uncertainties. We fought every odd, patiently and efficiently to retain our
position as the world's fastest-growing economy. Make in India campaign has created a
lot of entrepreneurs and India has the highest number of start-ups. The ease of doing
business has considerably improved. The oil crisis has been delicately handled by the
Government leveraging our relationships and India remains the shining star in the global
stage.
INDUSTRY OUTLOOK
The shipping industry has been witnessing turbulent times since the
boom during Covid-19 subsided. The post-pandemic period has reshaped the global trade and
the business of shipping, freight, maritime, logistics & supply chain, reinforcing the
need for stronger maritime and supply chain sector. Sudden spurt of supply realigning the
demand-supply dynamics brought about a huge downturn in the industry. The freight and
charter rates continue to drop. However, the Indian Government has been very pro-active
and initiatives like the logistics policy will improve ports, thereby facilitating
infrastructure for the shipping industry.
Our country's Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, launched PM Gati
Shakti - National Master Plan for multi-modal Connectivity -
essentiallyadigitalplatformtobring16Ministries,includingrailways and roadways together for
integrated planning and coordinated implementation of infrastructure connectivity
projects. PM Gati Shakti will incorporate the infrastructure schemes of various Ministries
and State Governments like Bharatmala, Sagarmala, inland waterways, dry/land ports, UDAN,
economic zones like textile clusters, pharmaceutical clusters, defence corridors,
electronic parks, industrial corridors, fishing clusters and agri zones will be covered to
improve connectivity & make Indian businesses more competitive. It will also leverage
technology extensively, including spatial planning tools with ISRO (Indian Space Research
Organisation) imagery developed by BiSAG-N (Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space
Applications and Geoinformatics)
In a nutshell, the companies with a strong foundation and vision will
survive the current industrial situation.
OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
During the year, we operated large part of our services on the Indian
coast. Our strategic business partnership with M/s Unifeeders ISC FZCO came into existence
as on 1st July 2021 pursuant to execution of long-term framework chartering
arrangement and continued during the year. Charter hire income now remain the primary
revenue driver for Your Company. During the year, we also added three container vessels,
MV SSL Godavari, MV SSL Kaveri and MV SSL Thamirabarani, in our portfolio, as a
replacement of three older vessels (MV SSL Chennai, MV SSL Kochi & MV SSL Ganga). MV
SSL Chennai and MV SSL Kochi were sold during the year. MV SSL Ganga will be sold before
the date of special survey. During the year, Your Company also completed dry dock/special
survey of 5 vessels with total capital cost of 160 Crores. As on 31st March
2023, our fleet consisted of 14 vessels, comprising 12 container vessels (26,105 TEUs and,
2,76,484 MT GRT and 3,47,061 MT DWT) and two dry bulk vessels (44,992 MT GRT and 69,402 MT
DWT), making us one of India's largest container tonnage owning company. The current
container ship tonnages are right sized and priced to suit the coastal trade. On the other
hand, the dry bulk carriers remain deployed in worldwide trades with first-class
charterers.
ROBUST FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE
Despite various headwinds, which includes mismatch of supply &
demand of containers, manpower unavailability and supply chain disruption, Your Company
showcased decent financial performance by reporting higher EBITDA levels and better
margins. Let me share some of the highlights of our financial performance during 2022-23:
Standalone Revenue from Operations stood at 48,378 lakhs as against
51,359 lakhs in the previous year
EBIDTA stood at 26,521 lakhs, registering a growth of 15% over the
previous year
Profit before Tax remained flat as compared to the previous year and
stood at 19,929 lakhs Earnings Per Share (EPS) was clocked at 90 per share, compared
to 115 in the previous year
FUTURE COURSE
Inspite of the volatility, we are bullish on the macro-economic trends
and are hopeful that factors like oil demand, inflation, supply chain disruptions and
interest rates will rebound back. We look forward for enhanced investment in various
segments with a strong belief in the Indian Economic outlook.
The markets are gradually recovering and shall continue to grow. The
Russia-Ukraine war might have hampered the progress temporarily, but the growing
consumption and improved business sentiments will have a positive impact on the economy as
well as on Your Company. Our presence across both containerised and bulk ships will allow
us to cater to both domestic as well as global opportunities. We plan foray into the
liquid bulk/tanker segment and are closely in talks with GIF City, Gujarat, for vessel
acquisitions.
Technology with human touch creating sustainable growth is the edifice
of our strategy. We are strongly driven by the philosophy of the Transworld Group
Higher Purpose of Delivering Prosperity to Humanity'. While we are in the
business to make profits for our shareholders, employees & associates, the sublime
goal is to use this wealth as a medium to share and create prosperity for the entire
eco-system and be a catalyst for positive change. Our corporate responsibility activities
are spread across all sections of the society and environment. The employees and their
respective families are all involved in our social activities, thereby spreading the
culture of compassion & giving. We target to be carbon neutral by 2043.
VOTE OF THANKS
I take this opportunity to thank my colleagues on the Board for their
knowledge and guidance in the evolving approach of our strategy and helping Your Company
grow consistently. I would also like to thank the entire team for their unwavering
dedication and tireless efforts in elevating Your Company's position in our business
space. I express my gratitude to all other stakeholders for their support and belief in
our journey. We look forward to your continued support in our journey towards achievement
of our goals.
Best Regards,
Ramakrishnan Sivaswamy Iyer
Executive Chairman