US oil refiner Citgo Petroleum on Thursday reported a rise in net income to $1.286 billion in the second quarter due to higher crude processing volumes and stronger margins.
The results reflect a sharp turnaround after consecutive annual losses in 2020 and 2021.
Demand and prices for gasoline, diesel and jet fuel have soared this year due to the recovery in the United States and global shortages caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The three plants of the eighth largest oil refiner in the United States processed 776,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), compared to 732,000 bpd a year earlier, the parent company posted on its Twitter account. It sold a record 130,000 barrels a day of unbranded gasoline to retailers, it added.
Refinery utilization rates, a key measure of efficiency, increased from 95% to 101% in the first quarter of this year.
A spokesperson was not immediately available to comment on the tweets.
Citgo, a subsidiary of Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA, is run by a board appointed by Juan Guaidó, whom Washington recognizes as Venezuela’s legitimate leader.
Last year, the company returned to profitability after consecutive annual losses during the coronavirus pandemic. Its profit of $245 million in the first quarter was more than 10 times the level of the previous period, due to increased processing volumes, higher exports and stronger margins.
On Thursday, Citgo said it was offering to buy $286 million of notes due 2024 and pay off nearly $483 million of a credit facility.
The debt reductions signaled that Citgo could soon resume paying dividends to its parent, a practice that halted after its 2019 split from state-owned PDVSA and the appointment of ad hoc boards that oversee Venezuela’s foreign assets.
In a tweet, the ad hoc board said that “CITGO Holding’s contractual debt agreements, entered into prior to 2019, require Citgo to make a principal payment offer on said debt before being able to send dividends.”
Citgo ended the quarter with liquidity of $2.2 billion, including cash and receivables securitization line availability, according to PDVSA ad hoc board posts on Twitter.
The company is protected, by US executive orders, from creditors trying to seize Venezuela’s foreign assets to collect unpaid debts.
The company would be willing to resume imports of Venezuelan heavy crude if the US government authorizes the flow, Citgo’s chief executive said in July. Crude imports are key to feeding the deep conversion units of its refineries.
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