BP quarterly profit hits $8.46bn, highest since 2008
BP's underlying replacement cost profit rose to $8.46bn in the three months to end-September, nearly quadrupling from $2.2bn a year earlier, The Guardian reports.
What you need to know
BP posted underlying replacement cost profit of $8.46bn for the three months to end-September, nearly quadrupling from $2.2bn a year earlier and its highest quarterly level since 2008, The Guardian reported. Refining margins boosted earnings as Middle East conflict lifted oil and gas prices, while UK pump prices rose and climate campaigners criticised the windfall ahead of Cop31.
- BP's underlying replacement cost profit reached $8.46bn in the quarter, up from $2.2bn a year earlier.
- The result was BP's highest quarterly profit since the $8.9bn recorded in 2008.
- BP attributed the quarter to strong refining margins and underlying performance.
- Shell and TotalEnergies also reported their strongest profits since 2022, largely on refining.
- Climate campaigners criticised the profits ahead of the Cop31 summit in Antalya, Turkey.
BP reports record quarterly profit
BP's quarterly profits reached an 18-year high of $8.46bn, The Guardian reported, as the war in the Middle East drove up oil and gas prices. The company's underlying replacement cost profit, a key measure of its income, almost quadrupled in the three months to the end of September from $2.2bn in the same period a year earlier, the report said.
The result was BP's highest quarterly profit since the $8.9bn recorded in 2008. The Guardian reported that BP chief executive Meg O'Neill described it as a banner quarter for the refining business, citing very strong margins from BP-operated refineries.
Refining margins and pump prices
BP's earnings were bolstered by higher profits from refining as the gap between crude oil costs and refined fuel prices widened, The Guardian reported. The report said pump prices for fuels including diesel have risen to record highs across the UK, Europe and the US due to refinery disruptions in the Gulf region and Russia.
The Guardian reported that Shell and French rival TotalEnergies also posted their strongest profits since 2022, largely due to refining. UK diesel averaged 198.79p a litre and petrol 172.92p, compared with 132.83p for petrol in late February before the latest Middle East conflict, according to RAC estimates cited by the paper.
Campaigners criticise windfall ahead of Cop31
Climate campaigners called the profits obscene, The Guardian reported, with Global Witness's Jonathan Noronha-Gant saying polluters were cashing in on the fallout of the war in Iran while civilians suffer. Friends of the Earth's Danny Gross criticised BP for raking in huge profits while doubling down on oil and gas and cutting renewable investment.
The results come just over a week before diplomats meet in Antalya, Turkey, for the Cop31 UN climate summit. The Guardian also reported that UK energy secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh is weighing whether to allow drilling at the North Sea's Rosebank oilfield.
How much did BP's quarterly profit rise?
BP's underlying replacement cost profit was $8.46bn for the three months to end-September, nearly quadrupling from $2.2bn a year earlier and its highest quarterly level since 2008, The Guardian reported.
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