The utilisation rate for the April-June quarter fell from 83% in the 2022/23 fiscal year ended on March 31, as two of its refineries conducted shutdown maintenance while another crude distillation unit (CDU) was shut for cleaning, a company spokesperson said.
"But for the full-year, we expect the rate recovering to around 80%," Yoshitaka Onuma, Idemitsu's executive officer, told a news conference.
The maintenance was done at the Chiba refinery and the Keihin refinery of Toa Oil, an Idemitsu unit, while the Hokkaido refinery shut its CDU for a short period for cleaning, the spokesperson said.
The 64% was the lowest run rate for the first quarter since its merger with Showa Shell in 2019, she said, adding that the three refineries have all restarted operations.
Idemitsu's net profit in the April-June quarter slumped 75% to 45.4 billion yen ($317 million) as falling oil prices removed hefty appraisal gains on its inventories that it had enjoyed last year.
Declining fuels output due to the lower run rate also dented exports.
The company kept its annual net profit forecast for 100 billion yen ($699.15 million).
Idemitsu, which owns a 35.1% stake in the Nghi Son Refinery, said that Vietnam's largest refinery has been profitable in operating earnings terms, but not in net earnings.
"Constructive discussions among sponsors are ongoing to improve its profitability, including cost-cutting measures and financial issues," Onuma said, without elaborating.
"The refinery faces no risk of shutdown (from the financial problem)," he said, but added that it will begin scheduled maintenance from the end of August for about 50 days.
($1 = 143.0700 yen)
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi, Editing by Louise Heavens)
By Yuka Obayashi
