LyondellBasell reports $906 million first quarter 2013 net profit

LyondellBasell Industries today announced first quarter 2013 earnings of $906 million, or $1.56 diluted earnings per share - a 44 per cent increase from the previous quarter (October-December 2012).

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation stood at $1.59 billion, a sequential increase of 25 per cent and a 29 per cent increase from the first quarter of 2012.

The gains were primarily due to improved operating results across all segments, other than refining, which had a planned maintenance turnaround, LyondellBasell said in a release today.

"The theme for our 2012 annual report was - "Seize the Moment - Securing the Future". We are converting these words to action. Our first quarter results demonstrate our success.  For example, in our olefins and polyolefins - Americas segment, we took advantage of strong industry margins, and for the third consecutive quarter, operated our ethylene plant system at or above nameplate capacity - achieving record profitability in this segment," said LyondellBasell chief executive officer Jim Gallogly.

During the quarter, the company received environmental permits and began construction on two key growth projects - the Channelview methanol plant restart and the La Porte olefins expansion - key milestones, which would help in securing future performance.

The company is all set to fully restart the methanol project this year and the La Porte expansion during 2014.  In addition, it completed a major turnaround at the Houston refinery, implementing modifications that would help the company to benefit from rapidly developing North American crude oil production.

''When completed, and assuming 2012 margins, these three projects would represent approximately $775 million of potential annual EBITDA," Gallogly added.

He said while the US olefins business set new records during the quarter, the situation in European olefins and polyolefins continued to be difficult. The underlying economic and industry conditions have not improved.

LyondellBasell said its intermediates and derivatives segment continued to post steady results. However, at the Houston refinery, major turnaround activities required a reduction in first quarter throughput, which negatively impacted the quarter, it added

Gallogly said the trends of the previous quarters continued into early April with the olefins and polyolefins (Americas) and intermediates and derivatives segments continuing to benefit from the shale gas developments.

Much will also depend ion the global macro-economic outlook, which as of now continues to be uncertain, Gallogly said.

Within this environment, our "back-to-basics" strategy will serve us well. Our focus is further sharpened as we proceed into the next chapter of our story - execution of our growth projects and the continued return of value to our shareholders," he added.

LyondellBasell operates in five business segments, including olefins and polyolefins, intermediates and derivatives, refining and technology.

The olefins and polyolefins divisions produce primary products like ethylene and its co-products (propylene, butadiene and benzene), polyethylene, polypropylene and catalloy process resins.

LyondellBasell is one of the world's largest plastics, chemical and refining companies, producing a range of products for a variety of uses, including packaging, electronics, automotive parts, home furnishings, construction materials and biofuels, at 58 sites across 18 countries.