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Feb 24 (Reuters) - Canadian oil producer Husky Energy Inc HSE.TO reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss, helped by lower production costs and higher margins in its refining operations.
Husky, controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing, said overall exploration and production operating costs fell 4 percent to C$13.92 per barrel in the fourth quarter.
Average realized U.S. refining margins more than doubled to $9.86 per barrel from a year earlier.
The Calgary, Alberta-based company's average production fell 8.4 pct to 327,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
The company reported a profit of C$186 million, or 19 Canadian cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31, helped by a gain on asset sales and the reversal of a C$202 million ($154 million) impairment charge.
Husky posted a loss of C$6 million, excluding the one-time items.
Excluding items, Husky reported a loss of 1 Canadian cent per share, compared with the analysts' average estimate of a loss of 2 Canadian cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Husky recorded a loss of C$69 million, or 9 Canadian cents per share, in the year-earlier quarter. to Thursday's close of C$16.40, the company's shares had gained 22.6 percent in value in the past 12 months.
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