EXXON MOBIL’S quarterly profit jumped 85 per cent on surging oil prices and a big rise in refining margins, while Royal Dutch Shell’s profits rose 34 per cent.

The two biggest nongovernment-controlled oil companies in the world relied on natural gas to drive production growth in the second quarter, a fuel traditionally less profitable than crude.

Texas-based Exxon said second-quarter production was four million barrels of oil equivalent per day, up 8 per cent on the same period a year earlier, while smaller rival Shell said output was up 5 per cent at 3.1 million.

After strong showings in the first quarter for both, the results raised hopes both companies could start to offer investors meaningful growth again.

“The production turnaround is now well under way and should only strengthen as the big projects come on stream in the next six months,” analysts at Petercam said in a research note on Shell.

Oil accounted for only 58 per cent of Exxon’s output, compared with 64 per cent in the same period last year and Shell’s oil weighting dropped to 53 per cent from 59 per cent.

A global gas glut due to the economic crisis and a big increase in US shale gas production means the outlook for gas prices is uncertain, which could put pressure on future earnings.

Exxon said second-quarter net income excluding one-offs rose 85 per cent compared with the same period in 2009, to $7.56 billion.

Shell said second-quarter profits, calculated on a similar basis, rose 34 per cent to $4.21 billion.

London-based BP said on Tuesday its underlying result rose 77 per cent.

Shell’s results included a $56 million charge related to the US moratorium on deep-water drilling, imposed after the BP oil spill three months ago. – (Reuters)