Sydney (Platts)--25Feb2013/522 am EST/1022 GMT

Caltex Australia produced 10.7 billion liters (184,386 b/d) of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel in 2012, up from 9.8 billion liters in 2011 and marking its highest output since 2007, the company said Monday.

Caltex, which supplies more than one third of all transport fuels in Australia, recorded flat sales volumes of gasoline, diesel and jet for the year of 15.7 billion liters.

The company's sales volume of all products, including items such as bitumen, was 20.8 billion liters, up from 19.9 billion liters in 2011. The increase underpinned a 5% rise in revenue to A$23.57 billion ($24.32 billion), from the previous A$22.4 billion.

On a historic cost basis, which includes inventory gains, Caltex posted a profit after tax of A$57 million. The result included significant items of around A$309 million, mainly related to provisions for the planned closure of the company's 135,000 b/d refinery at Kurnell in Sydney.

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Caltex decided last August to close the refinery and convert the Kurnell site into an import terminal. The configuration and scale of the refinery meant it would require substantial investment, which would not be economic, to enable it to compete with larger plants in the Asian region.

The closure process is on track for completion toward the end of 2014, the company said.

Caltex's full-year result compared with an after tax loss of A$714 million in 2011, which included significant items of A$1.116 billion relating to refinery impairment. The company also operates a 109,000 b/d refinery at Lytton in the city of Brisbane.

Caltex's replacement cost of sales operating profit for the year was A$458 million excluding significant items, up from A$264 million in 2011.

Caltex Managing Director and CEO Julian Segal attributed the rise to continued growth in the marketing and distribution business, lower depreciation charges and improved refinery reliability, leading to higher production volumes. Marketing and distribution's earnings before interest and tax were A$736 million, up 6% again from 2011's record level.

The refining and supply business posted a significant turnaround in 2012, delivering EBIT of A$88 million, compared with 2011's loss of A$208 million. Improved configuration at Lytton allowed it to contribute most of the division's earnings, while Kurnell just broke even, Caltex said.

Chief Financial Officer Simon Hepworth told a briefing that the Kurnell refinery made a loss of about A$40 million in 2012, but that included around A$40 million in one-off costs relating to its planned closure. In 2011, Kurnell lost about A$170 million.

The Lytton refinery made around A$130 million in 2012, compared with a loss in 2011 of about A$40 million. The increase reflected its lower cost base and its ability to make a majority of higher margin products, Hepworth said.

"In 2011, the Caltex refiner margin was $7.98/barrel and in 2012 it had improved to $11.83/b," Hepworth said. "A large part of the significant improvement year on year at both refineries was due to a significant improvement in the external drivers. But there were also big improvements in operational availability and production volumes at both refineries."

Caltex Australia is 50% owned by Chevron, with the remaining 50% traded om the local stock exchange.

--Christine Forster, christine_forster@plats.com
--Edited by Irene Tang, irene_tang@platts.com

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