Catering trains to reach ~1,500 in near term
Management expects to add ~200 more trains to catering services, targeting the total addressable market of ~1,500 train pairs with run time >8 hours.
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Indian Railway Catering And Tourism Corporation · forward-looking guidance across the available source record.
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What management said would happen.
growth
475 Vande Bharat trains to be added in 2 years
Ministry of Railways plans to add 475 Vande Bharat trains, which will boost IRCTC's ticketing, catering, and Rail Neer segments.
Four new Rail Neer plants to be commissioned
Three plants (Bhubaneswar, Kota, NTPC Simhadri) expected by end of calendar year 2023, and Vijayawada plant in Q1 FY25, increasing total capacity to 18.4 lakh liters per day.
Capex for Rail Neer: Vijayawada plant commissioning in October 2024
A new plant with 72,000 bottles per day capacity is expected to be commissioned in Vijayawada by October 2024.
CAGR targets: 17.3% revenue and 21% net profit CAGR over 5 years
Management aims to sustain or exceed historical 5-year CAGRs of 17.3% in revenue and 21% in net profit.
Catering margin range of 12%-15%
Catering EBITDA margins are expected to remain in the 12%-15% range, with potential improvement from premium trains.
Add three new Rail Neer bottling plants in FY26
Board approved expansion at Jannapur and Ambernath; plants at Prayagraj, Ranchi, Madalpur, and Mysuru in tendering stage.
Add one more Bharat Gaurav train rake in FY26
Management confirmed adding one more rake of Bharat Gaurav train this financial year.
RBI payment aggregator license in 12-18 months
In-principle approval received; expects final license in 12-18 months to capture non-ticketing payment business.
Float tender for AI-based ad monetization on portal
Plans to use AI for targeted ads and cross-selling on IRCTC platform to boost non-convenience fee revenue.
Zomato pilot at INR 40 per order
IRCTC has tied up with Zomato for food delivery at 5 stations, charging INR 40 per order. Pilot period is 6 months; pan-India expansion if successful.
Railneer capacity expansion to 1.768 lakh liters/day
New plants at Bhubaneswar and NTPC Simhadri (72,000 liters each) expected to commission in Q3 FY24, increasing total capacity from 1.624 lakh to 1.768 lakh liters per day.
Tejas trains profitability improvement
Management is realigning operating expenditure contracts for Tejas trains after withdrawal of concessions, aiming to make the segment profitable.
Payment aggregator license submission by end of January 2026
IRCTC will submit final application for payment aggregator license to RBI by end of January 2026, after receiving in-principal approval on August 4, 2025.
Bilaspur rail neer plant restart soon
Bilaspur plant (72,000 bottles/day capacity) will resume operations shortly after resolving state government issues.
Danapur and Ambernath rail neer capacity expansion to 3 lakh bottles/day
Capacity of Danapur and Ambernath plants will be expanded from 1 lakh to 3 lakh bottles per day.
Four new rail neer plants to be installed across India
IRCTC plans to install four additional rail neer plants, likely in the next fiscal year.
New catering policy to drive long-term contracts
IRCTC has floated tenders under a new catering policy offering 5+2 year contracts, replacing short-term six-month contracts, which will provide revenue stability.
Rail Neer capacity expansion to 18.4 lakh bottles/day by FY25
Current Rail Neer capacity is 16.96 lakh bottles/day; plans to increase to 18.4 lakh bottles/day by FY25 through new plants and capacity additions.
Tourism growth via state MOUs and Bharat Gaurav trains
IRCTC signed a two-year MOU with Uttarakhand government to promote tourism and is in talks with other states, expecting significant revenue from 10-12 such MOUs in three years.
Rail Neer capacity expansion of ~2 lakh bottles per day in FY26
Three new plants are planned in the coming financial year, adding approximately 2 lakh bottles per day to the current capacity of 18.4 lakh bottles per day.
Tourism margins expected to sustain or improve
Management expects tourism segment margins to remain at current levels or improve further, driven by luxury trains and Bharat Gaurav trains.
Payment Aggregator license in-principle approval expected soon
IRCTC applied for in-principle approval from RBI on December 12, 2024, and expects to receive it soon, opening up new payment gateway opportunities.
15% sustainable growth target for FY26
Management targets 15% sustainable growth across all segments for the current financial year.
260 Vande Bharat train sets to be introduced
Railway ministry plans to introduce 260 Vande Bharat train sets, which will boost catering business for IRCTC.
Rail Neer capacity expansion of 25-30% in 1.5 years
Board has sanctioned four new plants at Mysore, Prayagraj, Bhagalpur, and Ranchi, plus capacity doubling at Danapur and Ambala, adding 25-30% capacity in 1.5 years.
Catering EBIT margin target of ~15% for FY25
Management expects catering EBIT margin to recover to around 15% in FY25, driven by long-term contracts and operational efficiencies.
Tourism EBIT margin target of 8-9%
Management guided tourism segment EBIT margin to stabilize at 8-9% going forward, despite haulage charge headwinds.
E-catering internal target of 1.5 lakh orders per day
Management set an internal target to increase e-catering daily orders to 1.5 lakh, though not to be disclosed publicly.
Expansion of catering contracts with new trains and Amrit Bharat stations
Management expects to add catering units as new Vande Bharat trains are introduced and 1,400 Amrit Bharat stations are upgraded.
RBI payment aggregator license expected in 2-3 months
Management expects in-principle approval for the payment aggregator license within the current quarter or next 2-3 months, with final approval taking about a year.
Addition of one more Bharat Gaurav rake
IRCTC plans to add one more rake to its Bharat Gaurav train fleet, which currently operates 10 rakes on 16-17 itineraries.
Unified OTA portal for non-railway tourism
IRCTC is planning to merge all OTA platforms into a unified portal to improve hotel bookings, MICE activities, and air booking, aiming to grow non-railway revenue.