Calumet Specialty Products Partners LP reported net income of $31.5 million for the quarter ending Dec. 31, down slightly from $32.1 million for the same period in 2005. Sales revenue for the quarter fell six percent to $369 million.
Net income for the year reached $93.9 million last year, compared to $11.3 million for 2005. Calumet registered for an initial public offering as a limited partnership in October 2005 to pay off high levels of debt run up by several years of expansion. Its stock began trading in January 2006. Sales revenue for 2006 reached $1.6 billion, up 27 percent from $1.3 billion.
The Indianapolis-based company said improved specialty products margins positively impacted its fourth quarter performance, offset by decreased sales volume of specialty products and less favorable fuel products margins.
Calumet attributed the decrease in fuel products margins to lower crack spreads and higher costs associated with plant operations, primarily the result of increases in other material costs from the use of certain gasoline blendstocks in the fourth quarter to maintain compliance with environmental regulations. Calumet said it discontinued usage of the gasoline blendstocks during the fourth quarter upon determination of the companys continued compliance with the environmental regulations.
During the fourth quarter of 2006, we maintained our strong performance despite normal seasonality in our Specialty Products segment, said Bill Grube, Calumets president and CEO. We have started construction on the Shreveport capacity expansion project, which we expect to be completed and operational in the third quarter of 2007. The estimated $150 million expansion project, started in December, is expected to increase the refinerys crude oil throughput capacity by 40 percent, to 57,000 b/d.
Calumet produced slightly less specialty products – base oils, waxes, solvents and asphalt – in the fourth quarter compared to the year-earlier period. Specialty products production volume decreased 6 percent to 23,800 barrels per day from 25,410 b/d in 2005. Specialty products sales volume fell 16 percent to 20,473 b/d for the quarter ending Dec. 31. Base oil output fell 10 percent to 10,729 b/d.