United Refining Company Announces First Quarter 2008 Operating Results

WARREN, Pa., Jan. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- United Refining Company, a leading
regional refiner and marketer of petroleum products announces operating
results for the first fiscal quarter ended November 30, 2007.
Net sales for the three months ended November 30, 2007 and November 30,
2006 were $693.6 million and $584.6 million, respectively. This was an
increase of $109.0 million or 18.6% over the comparable quarter for the prior
year. Increases in net sales for the quarter were due primarily to increases
in selling prices.
Operating income for the three months ended November 30, 2007 was $29.1
million, an increase of $29.6 million from an operating loss of $.5 million
for the quarter ended November 30, 2006.
Net income/(loss) for the three months ended November 30, 2007 was $13.4
million, an increase of $16.6 million from a net loss of $3.2 million for the
quarter ended November 30, 2006.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA)
for the three months ended November 30, 2007 increased $32.2 million to $37.2
million from $5.0 million for the three months ended November 30, 2006.
United Refining Company uses the term EBITDA or Earnings Before Interest,
Income Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization, which is a term not defined under
United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. The Company uses this
term because it is a widely accepted financial indicator utilized to analyze
and compare companies on the basis of operating performance and is used to
calculate certain debt coverage ratios included in several of the Company's
debt agreements. See reconciliation of EBITDA to net income in footnote (1)
in table set forth below. The Company's method of computation of EBITDA may
or may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures used by other
companies.

UNITED REFINING COMPANY
(dollars in thousands)

Three Months Ended
November 30, November 30,
2007 2006

Net Sales $ 693,568 $ 584,596
Operating Income $ 29,075 $ (520)
Net Income / (loss) $ 13,413 $ (3,190)
EBITDA (1) $ 37,215 $ 5,007

(1) EBITDA Reconciliation:

UNITED REFINING COMPANY
(dollars in thousands)

Three Months Ended
November 30, November 30,
2007 2006

Net Income / (loss) $ 13,413 $ (3,190)
Interest Expense 9,297 5,994
Income Tax Expense / (Benefit) 9,321 (2,217)
Depreciation 4,039 3,497
Amortization 1,145 923
EBITDA $ 37,215 $ 5,007

United operates a 70,000 bpd refinery in Warren, Pennsylvania. In
addition to its wholesale markets, the Company also operates 371 Kwik Fill(R)
/ Red Apple(R) and Country Fair(R) retail gasoline and convenience stores
located primarily in western New York and western Pennsylvania.
Certain statements contained in this release are forward looking, such as
statements regarding the Company's plans and strategies or future financial
performance. Although the Company believes that its expectations are based on
reasonable assumptions within the bounds of its knowledge, investors and
prospective investors are cautioned that such statements are only projections
and that actual events or results may differ materially from those expressed
in any such forward-looking statements. In addition, the Company's actual
consolidated quarterly or annual operating results have been affected in the
past, or could be affected in the future, by additional factors, including,
without limitation, general economic, business and market conditions;
environmental, tax and tobacco legislation or regulation; volatility of
gasoline prices, margins and supplies; merchandising margins; customer
traffic, weather conditions; labor costs and the level of capital
expenditures.
SOURCE United Refining Company

James E. Murphy, Chief Financial Officer of United Refining Company,
+1-814-723-1500