New Delhi, Aug. 12 -- Tighter energy norms could reduce urea manufacturers' profitability by nearly 25% to around Rs 1,250 per tonne, while the impact could vary depending on gas prices, with higher prices potentially reducing the decline by Rs 75-100 per tonne this fiscal, Crisil said.

The rating agency said in its report, India's urea manufacturing capacity is broadly divided into two categories: legacy plants, which account for around 74 per cent of total capacity, and plants established under the New Urea Policy (NUP) 2012.

It noted, plants under NUP 2012 are assured a 12 per cent return on equity and remain insulated from the latest tightening of energy norms until the policy period expires. The legacy plants are heavily reliant on...