* Cost cuts ahead of schedule
* Rival Eni reports net loss
* Shares down alongside broader market (Adds details on New Energies, production, dividend)
By Bate Felix
PARIS, Oct 28 (Reuters) - France's Total battledlower refining margins to beat third-quarter profit expectationson Friday helped by cost cuts, output from new projects and astrong contribution from its renewable energy ventures.
Total reported a 25 percent fall in third-quarter adjustednet income to $2.1 billion, beating the $1.9 billion expected byanalysts polled by Reuters. Revenue fell 8 percent to $37.4billion.
"Total's Q3 results look resilient. Total continues to postsolid earnings and there's a lot to like about the direction oftravel," analysts at Jefferies who maintain a 'hold' rating onthe stock said in a note.
The energy company said the sale of a solar farm by U.S.subsidiary SunPower had provided a significant boost toits results, and New Energies businesses added $100 million inthe quarter's $545 million adjusted net operating income.
Italian peer Eni reported a worse-than-expectedadjusted net loss for the quarter hurt by a shutdown at a keyItalian field.
Total said increased oil and gas production and anaggressive saving drive put it on track to organically coverspending and dividends in a low oil environment of $55 a barrelnext year.
Total's oil production in the quarter was up 4.3 percentthanks to five new fields. That, and a ramp-up at nine fieldswhich started last year drove output growth and bolstered cashflow in the upstream segment.
The group increased cash flow by 13 percent compared to thesecond quarter. It said average cash flow per barrel in the newfields was higher than in existing fields.
It said production from projects started since 2015 areexpected to deliver around $3 billion in cash flow with Brent at$60 per barrel in 2017 and around $7 billion in 2020.
Total said costs were falling faster than expected and thatit would aim to deliver $4 billion in savings by 2018. It saidsavings would top $2.7 billion in 2016, 10 percent more thanforeseen at the start of the year.
In the upstream segment where it is finding most of itssavings, Total said its operating cost per barrel had fallen byabout 40 percent since 2014 to below $6 per barrel.
The company maintained its dividend at 0.61 euro per share,payable in April with a scrip dividend programme, However, thediscounted scrip programme will end in 2017 if Brent is at $60per barrel, it said.
Total's shares were down 1.04 percent by 1144 GMT to lag thebroader CAC 40 index which was up 0.37 percent but inline a European oil and gas index down 1.07 percent. (Additional reporting by Ron Bousso; Editing by Jason Neely)
