Occidental’s 1st-Quarter Income Falls 28%

Occidental Petroleum Corp. reported Thursday that its net income fell 28% in the first quarter, mainly because of depressed prices for chemicals, oil and natural gas.

The Los Angeles-based energy company’s earnings report, which was in line with the industry’s downward trend, showed the effects of the slack economy on Occidental’s core businesses, said industry analyst Eugene L. Nowak at Dean Witter Reynolds Inc. in New York.

Net income was $98 million, compared to $136 million in the first quarter of 1991. Sales were $2.2 billion, down from $2.8 billion a year earlier.

“While lower first-quarter interest costs show that we are realizing the benefits of our debt reduction program, overall earnings were depressed because of weaknesses in prices in our core businesses,” Chairman Ray R. Irani said.

Oil prices that were $2.50 a barrel less than a year ago helped lower earnings in the oil and gas division to $78 million from $122 million in 1991. The 1992 figure included a one-time $75-million payment based on the 1985 sale of Occidental’s Colombian operations to Royal Dutch/Shell.

Earnings from Occidental’s natural gas pipeline operations were $141 million, compared to $126 million in 1991. Chemical earnings were especially hard hit, down to $31 million from $139 million in 1991.

The 1992 earnings included a pretax gain of $99 million resulting from the sale of 12 million shares of Canadian Occidental Petroleum Ltd.