UPDATE 2-Imperial Oil profit falls on weak refining results

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CALGARY, Alberta, May 1 (Reuters) - Imperial Oil Ltd's (IMO.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) profit fell 12 percent in the first quarter as weak refining results and plant outages overshadowed the impact of record high crude prices, Canada's No. 2 oil producer and refiner by stock market value said on Thursday.

Imperial, known for extensive heavy-oil and oil-sands operations as well as its national chain of Esso gas stations, earned C$681 million ($668 million), or 75 Canadian cents a share, down from year-earlier C$774 million, or 81 Canadian cents a share.

The most recent result does not have gains from asset sales that fattened earnings in 2007, Imperial said.

Analysts surveyed by Reuters Estimates, on average, forecast earnings per share of 96 Canadian cents.

Revenue rose 25 percent to C$7.23 billion from $5.77 billion.

Shares of Imperial, which is majority-owned by U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), fell C$1.60, or nearly 3 percent, to C$57.82 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Before Thursday, the stock was up 9 percent since the start of the year.

Imperial and its rivals enjoyed oil prices that averaged a record $97.82 a barrel in the quarter, up more than two-thirds from the year before. Crude has recently climbed even higher to near $120 a barrel.

But Imperial said its results were hindered by a month-long unplanned outage at its Strathcona refinery near Edmonton, Alberta, which contributed to tight gasoline supplies in the region, as well as weak industry-wide refining margins.