Business1 min read

BP profits jump as Middle East conflict drives up oil refining margins

By · Via The Guardian Business · Published by Everything Blog

In short

BP generated $8.46bn in underlying replacement cost profit for the third quarter, easily surpassing analyst expectations of $7.33bn. The outperformance was aided by regional refinery disruptions in Russia and the Gulf, which pushed processing plants near full capacity and forced shipping into longer transit routes. BP confirmed it will allocate excess cashflow to fully extinguish its remaining $5.94bn liabilities tied to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Looking ahead, market observers expect the company's December strategy update to address potential oil and gas production growth alongside share buyback resumptions.

Key points

  • Disrupted trade flows and refinery outages in Russia and the Gulf region have forced faci…: Disrupted trade flows and refinery outages in Russia and the Gulf region have forced facilities to run near capacity while lengthening shipping routes.
  • Climate organizations including Friends of the Earth have condemned the profit surge whil…: Climate organizations including Friends of the Earth have condemned the profit surge while everyday households face elevated energy bills.
  • Investors anticipate BP may announce expanded oil and gas production and the resumption o…: Investors anticipate BP may announce expanded oil and gas production and the resumption of share buybacks during its December strategy presentation.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

BP has posted a jump in its quarterly profits as the war in the Middle East drove up oil and gas prices and led to “significantly higher” trading.

The energy company said on Friday that third-quarter underlying replacement cost profit – a key measure of its income – rose to $8.46bn, up from $2.2bn a year ago. Analysts had expected profits of $7.33bn.

The company said the jump in profits “mainly reflects significantly higher realised refining margins and significantly higher gas and marketing trading result”.

BP’s quarterly earnings were bolstered by higher profits from the oil refining business. Although global oil prices have remained below the peaks recorded during the 2022 energy crisis, the pump prices for fuels including diesel have soared to all-time highs across the UK, Europe and the US in recent months because of severe disruptions to refineries in the Gulf region and across Russia.

Meg O’Neill, the chief executive of BP, said: “These are dynamic times with volatility and disruption to trade flows continuing to define energy markets. The industry as a whole has been showing…

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