North Sea firms forced to slash projects in face of low oil price June 10, 2015 Over two-thirds of North Sea oil firms have been forced to scrap projects due to plummeting oil prices over the past year, a new report reveals today. Although the price of benchmark Brent crude has rallied in the last few days, trading yesterday at around $66 a barrel, it has yet to approach the level [...]
BP has bagged ex-MI6 chief Sir John Sawers as a non-exec director May 14, 2015 Oil giant BP has bagged ex-MI6 chief Sir John Sawers, who will sit on its board as a non-executive director with immediate effect. Sawers completed his five-year tenure as the top boss of the UK secret intelligence service in November 2014, and was the first MI6 chief to be appointed from outside of the service since 1968. [...]
BP finance boss Brian Gilvary commits to dividend as bid talk continues April 28, 2015 BP finance chief Brian Gilvary yesterday reconfirmed the company’s commitment to sustaining its dividend payout while shrugging off questions about potential bids for the oil giant. The group announced an interim dividend of 10 cents, or 6.67p, per share yesterday, and Gilvary said keeping the shareholder payout at the top of its agenda had [...]
BP’s share price shows it’s weathering the oil price crisis – in charts April 28, 2015 BP has suffered under the pressure of falling oil prices, as the continued low cost of the black stuff reshapes the oil industry. The company’s results, released today, showed a 20 per cent drop in profits – which, amazingly, was still above market expectations. Analysts expected earnings could fall to $1.28bn (£840m), but in the event, they [...]
BP share price edges up as profits plummet 20 per cent, but still beat expectations April 28, 2015 BP's share price rose slightly this morning, even as the company's results suffered from the effects of low oil prices. The energy giant’s underlying replacement cost profit was down 20 per cent for the three months ending 31 March, compared with the same period a year earlier. That sounds like terrible news, but the company [...]
Lib Dems: Blocking a BP takeover would be a massive Tory U-turn April 27, 2015 The Liberal Democrats believe it would be a huge shift for any future Conservative government to try to block a foreign takeover of BP. The party points to last year’s coalition row over a potential takeover of pharmaceutical giant Astrazeneca by Pfizer. Then, Vince Cable wanted to bring in greater restrictions to protect research and [...]
BP appeases green groups at 2015 AGM: Investors put climate change on the agenda April 16, 2015 Oil firm BP gave shareholders a taste of how committed the company is to keeping costs to a minimum in the face of falling oil prices at its annual general meeting, held yesterday in London, after it laid on a feast of sandwiches and crisps instead of the usual hot food. When one shareholder asked [...]
FTSE 100 market report: Budget goodies lift oil majors March 18, 2015 Britain's blue-chip index was 0.1 per cent higher this lunchtime as investors digested the chancellor's budget. Chancellor George Osborne unveiled £1.3bn additional support for the struggling north sea oil and gas industry. He said the Office for Budget Responsibility predicts this will boost production by around 15 per cent. Crumbling oil prices have made a [...]
Tesco hires BP vice president Byron Grote March 4, 2015 BP director and vice president Byron Grote is joining Tesco's board as the troubled supermarket looks to bolster its financial experience. Grote, who has been at BP since it acquired Standard Oil of Ohio in 1987, joins the Tesco board on May 1 as a non-executive director. The grocer said he brought “extensive executive [...]
Oil giant BP predicts Opec comeback as Brent crude price rises February 17, 2015 Saudi Arabia and its fellow Opec members are set to make a massive comeback and regain control of the world’s crude oil market, and could be in their previous position of influence as early as next year. The prediction, published by oil giant BP yesterday, is based on growth in America’s production of shale gas [...]