UPDATE 1-Unipetrol sees Q2 profit lower than some forecasts

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By Jan Korselt

Second-quarter profits at Czech oil group Unipetrol are likely to lag some analysts' estimates due to a higher one-off charge, the company said on Wednesday, knocking 2 percent off its share price.

Radek Nemecek, head of Unipetrol's investor relations, told Reuters an impairment charge on the sale of subsidiary Kaucuk in the second quarter would be several hundred million crowns higher than the 450 million crowns ($22 million) it took for the first quarter.

As a result, the Czech unit of Polish refiner PKN Orlen is likely to report a second-quarter net profit that is lower than the 1.6 billion to 1.7 billion crowns suggested by some analysts' forecasts obtained by the company, he said.

Unipetrol is due to report second-quarter earnings on Monday.

The company's shares fell 0.5 percent lower on the day to 283 crowns at 1303 GMT. They were up 1.5 percent just before the report.

The company agreed to sell Kaucuk to Poland's Firma Chemiczna Dwory in January and closed mid-July in mid-July, so it is taking the charge to reflect the fact that Kaucuk's earnings will not be included in full-year consolidated results.

"The impairment charge will be somewhat higher than the 450 million recorded in the first quarter, to the tune of hundreds of millions crowns," Nemecek told Reuters.

"When we talked to some analysts, we told them the charge would be at a similar level compared with the first quarter, so they based their estimates on that assumption. Afterwards we found out that it would be somewhat higher," he added.

[PRAGUE/Reuters/Finance.cz]