BP’s Chief Financial Officer Byron Grote said today the oil giant’s third quarter results, while down sharply from a year ago, highlight the underlying strength of the company and its steady progress in moving beyond the Gulf oil spill.

Returning to its first quarterly profit since the spill began in April, BP posted earnings of $1.8 billion, down from $5 billion in the third quarter of 2009.

The results came despite another massive charge — of $7.7 billion — for spill-related costs, and gave company officials the chance to frame the performance as the start of a comeback for the beleagured British firm.

Though potentially huge liabilities may still face the company, “We’re confident of meeting the challenges ahead,” Grote told financial analysts in a webcast from London today.

“These results demonstrate that BP is well on track for recovery after the tragic accident on the Deepwater drilling rig and subsequent oil spill,” BP CEO Bob Dudley added in a statement this morning.

BP, which took a $32.2 billion charge in the second quarter for the Gulf disaster, said it brought the bill to more than $40 billion in the third quarter after spill costs came in higher than expected. Part of that came from delays with a relief well, which was launched in early May but did not finally seal the damaged Macondo well until Sept. 19.

The Macondo well blew out on the evening of April 20, killing 11 workers and launching the worst oil spill in U.S. history. BP, after several failed attempts, plugged the gushing well on July 15, but pursued a final “bottom kill” with the relief well to ensure the well was permanently sealed.

Though the well is dead, Grote estimated BP is still spending about $40 million per day in ongoing cleanup efforts and wind down of the massive response apparatus. He said he expects that amount to be “materially less” by the end of the year.

While BP has paid out huge sums for the spill, Grote reiterated his belief that the company was not grossly negligent in the accident, a legal designation that could result in greater liability. Further, he said it is likely the firm will recover some expenses from partners in the well, including The Woodlands-based Anadarko Petroleum Corp., which holds a 25 percent stake.

Separately, a government-imposed moratorium on deep-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico after the accident will continue to have a negative impact on BP’s oil and gas production in the region. Though the ban was lifted on Oct. 12., compay output could be affected through 2011, Grote said.

Dudley took over as BP’s CEO on Oct 1, replacing Tony Hayward whose gaffe-filled handling of the Gulf spill crisis and prickly testimony before Congress sped his downfall.

Since then, Dudley has announced several steps aimed at improving safety across BP operations, restoring shareholder value and repairing the company’s sullied image. Those steps include a reorganization of the firm’s upstream oil and gas unit, the establishment of an independent safety division that reports directly to him and a pledge to revisit early next year when the company will resume dividend payments.

Asked Tuesday if the company’s board was still planning other, more aggressive steps to get the company back on track, Grote was non-commital.

“This is a list of things we wish to highlight at the current time,” he said. “No list is comprehensive.”