ConocoPhillips CFO: Phillips 66 Spinoff Will Definitely Be on May 1

HOUSTON -- ConocoPhillips is putting its final touches on its spinoff of Phillips 66 this week, and the transaction will take place as scheduled on May 1, said executive vice president and CFO Jeffrey Sheets.

Phillips 66 will be the parent company to ConocoPhillips' convenience store division once the spinoff is complete. As CSNews earlier reported,Phillips 66 will build a new headquarters in Houston and operate from a temporary location in the interim. As for ConocoPhillips' 2012 first-quarter earnings -- its last report as a consolidated company -- the company earned $2.9 billion compared to quarterly earnings of $3 billion during the same quarter last year. If not for one-time items, ConocoPhillips would have earned $2.6 billion for its latest quarter.

ConocoPhillips' refining and marketing division, current parent to its c-stores, earned $452 million in its 2012 fiscal first quarter, vs. $482 million last year. However, weaker refining margins, not c-stores, were responsible for weaker refining and marketing earnings, according to the company.

"Crude prices were good," said Sheets during an investor conference call this morning. "But North American natural gas prices offset that."

At the end of its fiscal first quarter, ConocoPhillips had $3.7 billion in cash and $500 million in short-term investments.

"We operated according to plan during the first quarter of 2012, achieving production and refinery utilization targets," said Jim Mulva, ConocoPhillips' chairman and CEO. "We continue to progress our asset divestment program and execution of our major projects and growth plans."