Valero Energy Partners says profits drop 28 pct

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Valero Energy Partners reported a 28 percent drop in first-quarter net income on Wednesday, as a rough winter curbed demand for the petroleum products that flow through its pipelines.

The San Antonio company, spun out of Valero Energy Corp. last year, reported net income of $10.5 million, or 18 cents per unit, in its first full quarter as a publicly traded company. That’s a sharp fall from the $14.5 million in net income the company reported in the same period of last year.