Repsol has extraordinarily raised its refining margin in the third quarter of the year, to 36.2 dollars per barrel, which represents an increase of 311% compared to the 8.8 dollars recorded in the same period of the previous year, according to data sent by the company to the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV).
If compared to the second quarter of 2026, when this indicator was at 14 dollars per barrel, the refining margin shows an increase of 158.6% in just three months.
The refining margin, understood as the difference between the selling value of refined petroleum products (gasoline, diesel, kerosene, among others) and the cost of crude oil used as raw material, also discounting the variable costs of the refining process itself, constitutes the key reference for measuring the profitability of a petroleum company's 'downstream' business.
The data corresponding to the period from July to September places this indicator of Repsol at unprecedented levels since 2022, when, in the midst of the crisis arising from the war in Ukraine, it reached 23.3 dollars per barrel in the second quarter.
Currently, this rebound occurs again in a context of scarcity of refined fuels in Europe, with particular tension in diesel, due to the conflict in the Middle East that began last February, which adds to the distortions caused by the invasion of Ukraine. All this is exacerbated by a structural deficit in refining capacity after years of facility closures on the continent. Under normal conditions, the average margin of the sector usually moves in a range of between 3 and 7 dollars per barrel.
Production up to 574,000 equivalent barrels
Regarding exploration and production activity, Repsol increased its volume to 574,000 equivalent barrels of oil between July and September, which represents an increase of 2.9% compared to the previous quarter and a growth of 4.2% compared to the same period of the previous year.
This increase was mainly supported by the performance of its business in North America, where production rose by 6.8% in quarterly terms, to 219,000 equivalent barrels of oil.
During the analyzed period, the company, which will present its results until September on October 29, set the average price of a barrel of Brent crude -reference in Europe- at 97.0 dollars. This figure implies a decrease of 6.6% compared to the second quarter of the year, although it remains 40.4% above the levels observed in the same period of the previous year.
For its part, the average price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude -reference in the United States- was at 85.7 dollars per barrel, 7.6% less than between April and June, but almost 32% higher than that recorded in the third quarter of 2025.