#Israel's Oil Refineries moves to Q2 profit, plans renewable energy shift | Reuters

Israel's Oil Refineries moves to Q2 profit, plans renewable energy shift | Reuters

Israel's Oil Refineries (ORL) (ORL.TA) swung to a profit in the second quarter as it continued to recover from coronavirus fallout, and said it would undergo a gradual transformation into renewable energy.

ORL, Israel's largest refining and petrochemicals group, said on Sunday it earned $68.5 million in the April-June period compared with a $10.8 million net loss a year earlier. Revenue jumped 122% to $1.57 billion.

Its adjusted refining margin was $4.6 a barrel in the second quarter, compared with $6.5 a year earlier but above Reuters' quoted Mediterranean Ural Cracking Margin of $0.3.

The margin, ORL said, would have reached $6.0 a barrel if not for a malfunction at one of its production facilities.

ORL said its strategy for the next decade was to transition to renewable energy for transportation, with an emphasis on green hydrogen and advanced polymers, alongside the firm's existing fuels and polymers.

Chairman Moshe Kaplinsky said that the plan, based on international standards, sets a goal for production of 15% green polymers by 2025 and 30% by 2030. It also set a target of producing hydrogen without CO2 emissions in the next two years.