BP drops oil output target in strategy reset | The Business Standard
Skip to main content
  • Epaper
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Banking
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • Videos
    • TBS Today
    • TBS Stories
    • TBS World
    • News of the day
    • TBS Programs
    • Podcast
    • Editor's Pick
  • World+Biz
  • Features
    • Panorama
    • The Big Picture
    • Pursuit
    • Habitat
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Mode
    • Tech
    • Explorer
    • Brands
    • In Focus
    • Book Review
    • Earth
    • Food
    • Luxury
    • Wheels
  • Subscribe
    • Epaper
    • GOVT. Ad
  • More
    • Sports
    • TBS Graduates
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • Gallery
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Magazine
    • Climate Change
    • Health
    • Cartoons
  • বাংলা
The Business Standard

Friday
May 30, 2025

Sign In
Subscribe
  • Epaper
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Banking
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • Videos
    • TBS Today
    • TBS Stories
    • TBS World
    • News of the day
    • TBS Programs
    • Podcast
    • Editor's Pick
  • World+Biz
  • Features
    • Panorama
    • The Big Picture
    • Pursuit
    • Habitat
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Mode
    • Tech
    • Explorer
    • Brands
    • In Focus
    • Book Review
    • Earth
    • Food
    • Luxury
    • Wheels
  • Subscribe
    • Epaper
    • GOVT. Ad
  • More
    • Sports
    • TBS Graduates
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • Gallery
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Magazine
    • Climate Change
    • Health
    • Cartoons
  • বাংলা
FRIDAY, MAY 30, 2025
BP drops oil output target in strategy reset

Global Economy

Reuters
07 October, 2024, 12:35 pm
Last modified: 07 October, 2024, 12:43 pm

Related News

  • Shell is studying merits of buying BP: Bloomberg
  • bp celebrates 40-year milestone with Meghna Petroleum in Bangladesh
  • BP announces new oil discovery off US Gulf coast
  • Bangladesh's new LNG purchase policy draws Shell, BP, Glencore and Aramco
  • European oil giants step back from renewables path

BP drops oil output target in strategy reset

The London-listed company is now targeting several new investments in the Middle East and the Gulf of Mexico to boost its oil and gas output, the sources said

Reuters
07 October, 2024, 12:35 pm
Last modified: 07 October, 2024, 12:43 pm
Logo of British Petrol BP is seen e at petrol station in Pienkow, Poland, June 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/File Photo
Logo of British Petrol BP is seen e at petrol station in Pienkow, Poland, June 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/File Photo

BP has abandoned a target to cut oil and gas output by 2030 as CEO Murray Auchincloss scales back the firm's energy transition strategy to regain investor confidence, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.

When unveiled in 2020, BP's strategy was the sector's most ambitious with a pledge to cut output by 40% while rapidly growing renewables by 2030. BP scaled back the target in February last year to a 25% reduction, which would leave it producing 2 million barrels per day at the end of the decade, as investors focused on near-term returns rather than the energy transition.

The London-listed company is now targeting several new investments in the Middle East and the Gulf of Mexico to boost its oil and gas output, the sources said.

The Business Standard Google News Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel

Auchincloss took the helm in January but has struggled to stem the drop in BP's share price, which has underperformed its rivals so far this year as investors question the company's ability to generate profits under its current strategy.

The 54-year-old Canadian, previously BP's finance head, has sought to distance himself from the approach of his predecessor Bernard Looney, who was sacked for lying about relationships with colleagues, vowing instead to focus on returns and investing in the most profitable businesses, first and foremost in oil and gas.

The company continues to target net zero emissions by 2050.

"As Murray said at the start of year... the direction is the same – but we are going to deliver as a simpler, more focused, and higher value company," a BP spokesperson said.

Auchincloss will present his updated strategy, including the removal of the 2030 production target, at an investor day in February, though in practice BP has already abandoned it, the sources said. It is unclear if BP will provide new production guidance.

Rival Shell has also scaled back its energy transition strategy since CEO Wael Sawan took office in January, selling power and renewable businesses and scrapping projects including offshore wind, biofuels and hydrogen.

The shift at both companies has come in the wake of a renewed focus on European energy security following the price shock sparked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.

BP has invested billions in new low-carbon businesses and sharply reduced its oil and gas exploration team since 2020.

But supply chain issues and sharp increases in costs and interest rates have put further pressure on the profitability of many renewables businesses.

A company source said that while rivals had invested in oil and gas, BP had neglected exploration for a few years.

BACK TO THE MIDDLE EAST

BP is currently in talks to invest in three new projects in Iraq, including one in the Majnoon field, the sources said. BP holds a 50% stake in a joint venture operating the giant Rumaila oilfield in the south of the country, where it has been operating for a century.

In August, BP signed an agreement with the Iraqi government to develop and explore the Kirkuk oilfield in the north of the country, which will also include building power plants and solar capacity. Unlike historic contracts which offered foreign companies razor-thin margins, the new agreements are expected to include a more generous profit-sharing model, sources have told Reuters.

BP is also considering investing in the re-development of fields in Kuwait, the sources added.

In the Gulf of Mexico, BP has announced it will go ahead with the development of Kaskida, a large and complex reservoir, and the company also plans to green light the development of the Tiber field.

It will also weigh acquiring assets in the prolific Permian shale basin to expand its existing US onshore business, which has expanded its reserves by over 2 billion barrels since acquiring the business in 2019, the sources said.

Auchincloss, who in May announced a $2 billion cost saving drive by the end of 2026, has in recent months paused investment in new offshore wind and biofuel projects and cut the number of low-carbon hydrogen projects down to 10 from 30.

BP has nevertheless acquired the remaining 50% in its solar power joint venture Lightsource BP as well as a 50% stake in its Brazilian biofuel business Bunge.

 

World+Biz

BP / British Petroleum (BP)

Comments

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderation decisions are subjective. Published comments are readers’ own views and The Business Standard does not endorse any of the readers’ comments.

Top Stories

  • Deep depression over Bay of Bengal on 29 May. Photo: ANI
    Heavy rain, tidal surges trigger flood warnings as deep depression crosses coast
  • Powerful tidal surges from the Meghna River flooded more than 100 villages in four coastal upazilas of Lakshmipur on 29 May 2025. Photo: TBS
    Meghna tidal surge floods over 100 villages as incessant daylong rain batters Lakshmipur
  • Attackers vandalise the windows of the residence of Jatiyo Party (JaPa) Chairman GM Quader and set fire to a motorcycle in Rangpur on 29 May 2025. Photo: TBS
    Jatiyo Party chief GM Quader's Rangpur house attacked; NCP, SAD activists blamed

MOST VIEWED

  • Dhaka areas at a gridlock on Wednesday, 28 May 2025. Photo: Syed Zakir Hossain/TBS
    BNP, Jamaat rallies: Traffic clogs Dhaka roads, including Motijheel, Paltan, Dainik Bangla intersection
  • IFIC Bank receives Tk6,000 cr in new deposits in six months
    IFIC Bank receives Tk6,000 cr in new deposits in six months
  • Mohammad Abdul Mannan, chairman FSIB Ltd. Sketch: TBS
    FSIB to bounce back soon
  • Abdul Awal Mintoo, chairman of National Bank Limited. Sketch: TBS
    'Regulatory support must for National Bank to restore depositors' confidence'
  • Md Nazrul Islam Swapan, chairman of EXIM Bank. Sketch: TBS
    Exim Bank restored depositors’ confidence, overcoming challenges
  • Mohammad Mamdudur Rashid, managing director and CEO, UCB. Sketch: TBS
    Customers’ trust and confidence fueling deposit growth at UCB

Related News

  • Shell is studying merits of buying BP: Bloomberg
  • bp celebrates 40-year milestone with Meghna Petroleum in Bangladesh
  • BP announces new oil discovery off US Gulf coast
  • Bangladesh's new LNG purchase policy draws Shell, BP, Glencore and Aramco
  • European oil giants step back from renewables path

Features

For hundreds of small fishermen living near this delicate area, sustainable fishing is a necessity for their survival. Photo: Syed Zakir Hossain

World Ocean Day: Bangladesh’s ‘Silent Island’ provides a fisheries model for the future

8h | The Big Picture
The university will be OK. But will the US? Photo: Bloomberg

A weaker Harvard is a weaker America

8h | Panorama
The Botanical Garden is a refuge for plant species, both native and exotic. Photo: Mehedi Hasan/TBS

The hidden cost of 'development' in the Botanical Garden

8h | Panorama
Stillbirths in Bangladesh: A preventable public health emergency

Stillbirths in Bangladesh: A preventable public health emergency

8h | Panorama

More Videos from TBS

Record migrant deaths in 2024

Record migrant deaths in 2024

5h | Podcast
News of The Day, 29 MAY 2025

News of The Day, 29 MAY 2025

7h | TBS News of the day
Businesses set for relief as interim govt eyes major tax & fine cuts

Businesses set for relief as interim govt eyes major tax & fine cuts

10h | TBS Insight
Love is essential for human life

Love is essential for human life

9h | TBS Programs
EMAIL US
contact@tbsnews.net
FOLLOW US
WHATSAPP
+880 1847416158
The Business Standard
  • About Us
  • Contact us
  • Sitemap
  • Advertisement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Comment Policy
Copyright © 2025
The Business Standard All rights reserved
Technical Partner: RSI Lab

Contact Us

The Business Standard

Main Office -4/A, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka- 1000

Phone: +8801847 416158 - 59

Send Opinion articles to - oped.tbs@gmail.com

For advertisement- sales@tbsnews.net