Marathon Petroleum plans to extend business

Oil industry giant Marathon Petroleum has announced plans to expand following second-quarter profits.

The company revealed it made a net income in the three months to June of $996 million (£607 million), an increase compared to the $709 million net profit recorded in the second quarter of 2010.

In an interview with Dow Jones, chief executive officer Gary Heminger said the company is considering an expansion out of the Midwest and Gulf Coast.

"We're satisfied with what we have" in those regions, Mr Heminger said.

"But we continue to look for something that would make sense for a bolt-on or an add-out [acquisition]," he explained.

Oil industry firm BP has also recently announced profits for the second quarter of this year.

Despite heavy losses as a result of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the high oil prices saw the company achieving profits of $5.3 billion for the three months to June 2011.