2346 GMT - Viva Energy's update in the aftermath of the Geelong refinery fire suggests that restarting the Residue Catalytic Cracking Unit will take around one month longer than originally signaled, Jefferies says. Viva Energy says the RCCU and associated units are likely to be operational again in June. Production will rise to more than 90% of capacity once the RCCU is back online. Analyst Michael Simotas says the implied delay largely affects gasoline volumes, which are generating relatively low margins currently. "Middle distillate crack spreads remain very high, and will be a more important driver of earnings and cash flow than volume," Jefferies says. It retains a hold call and A$2.25/share price target on Viva Energy, which ended Monday at A$2.42. (david.winning@wsj.com; @dwinningWSJ)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 04, 2026 19:46 ET (23:46 GMT)

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