Medanta's newest hospital in Noida is on track to turn cash positive within the next three to four months, according to Group CEO Pankaj Sahni and CMD Dr Naresh Trehan, as the healthcare group works to convert its largest recent capital investment into a meaningful earnings contributor.
Speaking to ET Now, the two executives addressed investor concerns around a visible margin dip in the company's latest quarterly results — and made a clear case that the worst is already behind them.
Margin dip was always Noida's story
Medanta's consolidated EBITDA margin contracted to 21% in Q4, down from 24.1% a year earlier, against a backdrop of 25% revenue growth. The natural read was rising employee costs. The actual explanation, Sahni said, is more specific: startup losses at the Noida facility, which began operations in late November, were entirely responsible for the compression.
Strip out Noida, and the rest of the portfolio actually expanded margins by 50 to 70 basis points in the same period. The peak losses at Noida, Sahni confirmed, occurred in Q3 and have been declining month on month through Q4. The company expects Noida to reach profitability in the second half of the coming financial year.
Noida Ramp-Up: Insurance, Beds, and Transplants
Dr Trehan described the Noida ramp-up as progressing ahead of internal expectations. Footfalls — both inpatient and outpatient — are growing, and the quality of the clinical team has been drawing patients seeking complex, high-acuity care.
On the operational side, Medanta has secured almost all major insurance empanelments at Noida, including CGHS accreditation and NABH quality certification — the latter achieved within just six months of opening. Currently operating at 380 beds, the facility will add approximately 150 more in the coming financial year.
The one remaining milestone is the liver transplant programme. Dr Trehan said kidney transplants are already underway and liver transplant approvals are being sought, with a formal programme launch expected within one to two months. The broader plan follows Medanta's standard methodology: establish foundation specialties solidly before layering in complex transplant services.
Mature hospitals holding firm
While Noida draws the spotlight, Medanta's established portfolio — anchored by its flagship 1,500-bed Gurugram facility along with hospitals in Indore, Ranchi, Lucknow, and Patna — delivered Q4 margins of 26.7%, with management guiding for a sustainable 24% to 25% range going forward.
Sahni pointed to consistent volume growth in Gurugram despite increasing regional competition, additional operating room capacity being added, and strong demand for complex surgical work as the basis for that confidence. Lucknow, operational for six and a half years, and Patna, at four and a half years, are still posting high growth rates — a signal, he argued, that Medanta's model sustains momentum well beyond the typical early ramp-up phase.
A large expansion pipeline with minimal capex on brownfield beds
Looking further out, Medanta has approximately ₹4,500 crore of capex lined up to add around 2,700 to 4,000 beds over the next three to four years. Around 500 additional beds will be added in the coming financial year alone — all on brownfield capacity, meaning minimal incremental capital outlay for meaningful bed additions.
New greenfield facilities are planned or already announced in Guwahati, Varanasi, Delhi, and Mumbai, with a recent acquisition in Indore also being integrated. Sahni described the group's long-term consolidated EBITDA margin target conservatively at 24% to 26%, with operating leverage from scale providing potential upside as occupancy thresholds are crossed.
