Australia's Orica H1 profit up 15 pct

MELBOURNE, May 4 (Reuters) - Orica Ltd (ORI.AX), the world's top maker of explosives used in mines, reported a 15 percent rise in first-half profit before one-offs, helped by record profit growth for its mining services business.

The Australian group, which also makes chemicals and paints, reiterated it expected profit to grow this year.

Net profit before one-offs rose to A$264 million ($194 million) for the six months to March 31 from A$229.8 million a year earlier, meeting six brokers' forecasts for profit of around A$260 million.

Orica said net profit after tax and items totalled A$220 million. (Reporting by Sonali Paul)