Tesoro's profit jumps on record production
Tesoro Corp., which operates the larger of the two oil refineries in Hawaii, said yesterday its third-quarter net income increased 21.2 percent as its refineries in California, Alaska, Washington and North Dakota processed crude oil at record rates.
At Tesoro's Campbell Industrial Park facility on Oahu, the total number of barrels of refined products of gas, jet fuel, diesel fuel and heavy oils rose 2.3 percent to 89,000 daily barrels from 87,000 a year ago.
Tesoro's refining margin in Hawaii increased to $9.31 a barrel from $5.60 a barrel.
The figures released yesterday did not include an interruption in production following the Oct. 15 earthquake-related blackout on Oahu, which occurred after the quarter ended.
The San Antonio-based refiner said earnings for the quarter rose to $274 million, or $3.92 a share, compared with $226 million, or $3.20 a share, a year earlier. Analysts had expected earnings per share of $3.29, according to Thomson Financial.
Last quarter's results included an after-tax charge of $17 million, or 24 cents a share, related to the termination of a coker project in Anacortes, Wash.
Revenue rose 5.2 percent to $5.3 billion from $5 billion as the company set a production record for an individual quarter of 574,000 barrels per day, 15,000 a day greater than the previous record.
"Over the past 12 months, five of our six refineries have recorded quarterly record throughput rates," said Bruce Smith, chairman, president and chief executive of Tesoro.
The company also declared a regular quarterly dividend of 10 cents a share that will be payable Dec. 15 to shareholders of record as of Dec. 1.