* Will look at Gas Natural stake sale, in no hurry - CFO
* Adjusted net profit 509 million euros, beats forecasts
* Adjusted EBIT 979 million euros vs 944 million poll
* Production up 12 percent, refining margins down 45 percent
By Tracy Rucinski and Andrés González
MADRID, July 25 (Reuters) - Spanish oil group Repsol paved the way for the eventual sale of its stake inutility Gas Natural Fenosa on Thursday, as higherproduction helped it to beat second-quarter profit forecasts.
Chief Financial Officer Miguel Martinez said the rationalefor holding the 30 percent stake in Gas Natural would be lostafter Repsol closes a deal to sell a large part of its naturalliquid gas assets to Royal Dutch Shell.
"We are not in a hurry, but it is true, that is something wehave to seriously think about," he told investors on aconference call, when asked about selling the stake, which isworth 4.5 billion euros ($6 billion) at current market prices.
Repsol said net profit adjusted for one-time items andinventory costs (CCS adjusted net) rose 5.8 percent to 509million euros in the second quarter, beating analysts' forecastsof 402-481 million according to a Reuters poll.
Production rose 12 percent to 359,700 barrels of oilequivalent (BOE) per day, putting the company firmly on track tomeet its target for 10 percent production growth in 2013.
New projects in Repsol's upstream business have helped itpost steady results since the nationalisation of its majoritystake in Argentine energy company YPF last year.
Growth at the company's liquefied natural gas (LNG)business, where operating profit more than doubled in the secondquarter from a year earlier, also boosted results and helped tocompensate for a 45 percent decline in refining margins.
However, the company is in the process of selling a largepart of its LNG assets to Royal Dutch Shell for $6.7 billion.That deal is expected to be finalised by the end of the year.
Repsol's CCS earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose4.6 percent to 979 million euros in the second quarter against apoll average of 944 million.
Net borrowings totalled 6.32 billion euros at June 30,including debt from a preference share issue but excludingborrowings related to the stake in Gas Natural.
Repsol has not yet received compensation from Argentina forthe nationalization of YPF. It continues to pursue legal actionafter unofficial talks over a severance package ended without anagreement last month.
Still, its shares have risen around 50 percent over the pastyear, slightly outperforming the sector to reach the levels thestock was trading before the YPF expropriation.
At 1345 GMT, Repsol shares were up 0.3 percent at 17.4euros, wile Gas Natural's were up 0.5 percent at 14.995 euros.
Among other European integrated oil companies, Statoilmissed second-quarter expectations on Thursday.
Peers BP, Eni and Royal Dutch Shell are dueto release second-quarter results next week.
