UPDATE 1-Fortune Oil Q1 natural gas sales up 44 pct

* Bluesky's volume sales of jet fuel up 8 pct in Q1

* Trading business sales up three-fold in Jan-April

* Shares up 10 pct (Adds details)

May 18 (Reuters) - Fortune Oil Plc (FOOI.L) said on Monday sales of natural gas rose 44 percent in the first quarter from the same period last year, helped by a diverse revenue base, sending its shares up 10 percent.

The company, which manages oil and gas supply and infrastructure projects in China, said its gas-distribution business continued to experience sustained growth, mainly for sales of pipeline gas to new users and compressed natural gas for vehicles.

Sales of natural gas in the first quarter were 117 million cubic metres, it said.

Volume sales of jet fuel at the company's Bluesky aviation refuelling business rose 8 percent in the first quarter to 0.46 million tonnes, Fortune Oil said.

The company said its trading business increased its sales three-fold in the first four months of 2009 from the year-ago period, mainly through the import of fuel oil and base oil.

The group also said its cash balance exceeded its outstanding bank loan balances.

Fortune Oil shares were up 0.63 pence at 6.95 pence at 0733 GMT. (Reporting by Balachander Surianarayanan in Bangalore; Editing by Vinu Pilakkott)