UPDATE 1-Murphy plans Q1 work at two refineries
(Adds details, CEO's quotes)
NEW YORK, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Murphy Oil Corp (MUR.N) said Thursday it plans unspecified turnaround work in the first quarter of 2010 at its refineries in Meraux, Louisiana, and Milford Haven in the United Kingdom.
The outlook for Murphy's downstream sector remains bearish during the current quarter because of weak fuel profit margins, President and Chief Executive Officer David Wood told analysts during a conference call to discuss quarter earnings.
On Wednesday, El Dorado, Arkansas-based Murphy said third quarter profit fell 68 percent to $188.9 million as crude oil prices dropped sharply from a year ago and weak fuel demand in the global economic slowdown hurt its refining business. [ID:nN0459885]
Murphy's Meraux refinery was currently running at about 110,000 barrels per day (bpd) while its Superior, Wisconsin, plant was at 34,000 bpd, due to the margins remaining weak in the fourth quarter, the top executive said.
This is down from the total capacity of the refineries of about 125,000 bpd in Meraux and 35,000 bpd in Superior.
Meanwhile, the Milford Haven refinery is currently operating near 102,000 bpd, the official said, which is down from its nameplate capacity of about 108,000 bpd.
"Refining margins during October were weak," Wood told the analysts during the call, adding that crack spreads remained weak both in the United States and the United Kingdom in the third quarter.
"Weak refining plus weak retail equals a weak downstream outlook for the fourth quarter," the official added.
Wood gave no further details about the nature or the duration of the work at Meraux or Milford Haven.
Earlier this year, Murphy said turnaround work at Milford Haven will include a de-bottlenecking project which will expand the refinery's capacity to 130,000 bpd from about 108,000 bpd currently.
Shares in Murphy were down $3.46, or 5.47 percent at $59.81 on the New York Stock Exchange in afternoon trade, compared with 52-week highs and lows at $65.12 and $35.55, respectively. (Reporting by Haitham Haddadin; Editing by John Picinich)
