Ampol's Refining Margins Double as High Oil Prices Boost Australian Energy Firm
Australian fuel company Ampol reported that its Lytton refinery's margin more than doubled to $23.92 per barrel in Q3 2026 compared with a year earlier, as Middle East supply disruptions drove oil prices above $110 a barrel — though a delayed maintenance restart sent its shares down 3.8%.
Australian petroleum and convenience retailer Ampol released its third-quarter 2026 trading update on October 19, revealing that its Lytton refinery in Queensland achieved a refining margin of $23.92 per barrel — up 125% from $10.64 a barrel in the same period a year earlier. The surge was directly attributed to supply disruptions caused by the ongoing Middle East conflict, which drove Brent crude briefly above $110 a barrel and widened crack spreads that benefit domestic refiners. Despite the strong refining result, Ampol's shares fell 3.8% to A$41.35 after the company disclosed that an inspection of its Fluidised Catalytic Cracking Unit (FCCU) at Lytton had identified additional maintenance work, pushing the unit's restart back to mid-November and reducing output of higher-value products in the fourth quarter. The ASX 200 index opened slightly higher on Monday, up 0.3% at 8,822 points, as Australia's tech-light market avoided the worst of the Nasdaq's AI-driven selloff. Investors viewed Ampol's result as emblematic of the broader theme: energy companies are benefiting handsomely from elevated crude prices even as the rest of the global economy bears the cost.
