Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd had on Saturday reported nearly 50 per cent decline in net profit at Rs 465.43 crore for the first quarter ended June 30, 2013, after it was hurt by lower sales. The power equipment maker had clocked a net profit of Rs 920.90 crore in the year-ago period. In the first quarter of current fiscal, BHEL saw its net sales decline substantially to Rs 6,352.55 crore from Rs 8,326.24 crore in the same period a year ago.

Sluggish prospects in the domestic power sector as well as cheap imports of power equipment is adversely impacting the business of BHEL. At the end of June quarter, the company's outstanding order book stood at Rs 1,08,600 crore. Meanwhile, in the broader market, the BSE benchmark Sensex was trading at 19,252.59, up 88.57 points in late morning trade.