Orica stock surges on profit rebound Chemical company Orica has lifted its full-year profit despite remaining weakness in its underground tunnelling and drilling division. The company reported a net profit of $602 million, up 49 per cent from a year earlier when it suffered from a $247 million write-off against its Minova business. However, excluding last-years write-down, profit was down 7.5 per cent year on year. The profit numbers were well received by the market, with investors pushing the shares up 6.1 per cent to $20.73 in early trade. Orica said subdued conditions remained in most of the explosives markets, including the Pilbara and Africa where growth is expected to continue. The company declared a fully franked final dividend of 55 cents per ordinary share. "Net profit after tax before individually material items in 2014 is expected to exceed 2013," it said. However volatile market conditions add a greater degree of uncertainty. Orica's full-year sales revenue was $6.9 billion, up 3 per cent from 2012. Its earnings before interest and tax was 4 per cent lower at $985 million. Orica has merged its tunnelling and drilling business, called ground support, with its mining services division. It said it sped up the integration in response to weakness in the ground support division, as miners move away from the drilling phase of the resources boom. Orica also announced on Monday it had entered a three-year gas sales agreement with Esso Australia and BHP Billiton to purchase up to 42 petajoules of natural gas from Longford in Victoria beginning in 2017. The Esso/BHP joint venture will supply gas for the first time to Orica, it said. "This important agreement with Esso/BHP Billtion gives Orica security of gas supply to the end of the decade for our Kooragang Island manufacturing facility from a highly reliable supplier," chief executive Ian Smith said.