Feb 12 (Reuters) - Australia's Origin Energy ORG.AX reported a more than 35% drop in first-half profit on Thursday, hit by lower earnings at its Australia Pacific liquefied natural gas (APLNG) project in Queensland due to weaker sales and softer realised prices.

Origin, one of Australia's top power producers, reported underlying profit of A$593 million ($422.33 million) for the six months ended December 31, compared with A$924 million reported a year earlier.

However, it beat the Visible Alpha consensus estimate of A$577.9 million.

($1 = 1.4041 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Kumar Tanishk and Nichiket Sunil in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)

((Nichiket.Sunil@thomsonreuters.com;))