BP profit quadruples as Iran war sends refining margins soaring and debt tumbles

BP's profit attributable to shareholders rose to $4.7 billion (€4.2bn) for the July to September period, four times the $1.16 billion (€1.04bn) of a year earlier, it said on Friday, as disruption from the Iran war boosted its refining and trading earnings.

The British oil and gas major also beat analysts' forecasts and cut its net debt by $8.4 billion (€7.5bn), weeks before its new CEO sets out her strategy in December.

Its underlying replacement cost profit, the figure investors judge BP on, nearly quadrupled to $8.5 billion (€7.6bn) from $2.2 billion (€1.96bn), well above the $6.2 billion (€5.55bn) expected.

It strips out swings in the value of BP's oil and fuel stocks and one-off items, such as $4 billion (€3.58bn) of writedowns this quarter, mostly on what it called "transition businesses".

Like its rivals, BP cashed in on refining margins, the difference between what refiners pay for crude and what they earn from fuels such as diesel. With the war choking off fuel exports from the Middle East, refineries elsewhere are profiting from tight global supplies.

CEO Meg O'Neill, who took over in April, described "a strong set of results, supported by the higher-price, higher-margin environment".

Net debt also fell to $13.9 billion (€12.4bn) from $22.3 billion (€19.9bn) three months earlier, helped by BP suspending share buybacks in February to put spare cash towards its balance sheet. The company said it had now met its targets for cutting debt and costs, and kept its quarterly dividend at 8.66 cents a share.

BP also said it intends to prioritise using spare cash to settle its remaining liabilities from Deepwater Horizon, the 2010 explosion and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that killed 11 workers, after agreeing last week to speed up payments of the $16 billion (€14.3bn) settlement to the US state of Louisiana.

O'Neill unveils her strategy on 15 December as BP, long seen as lagging its peers, had already cut back clean energy spending to refocus on more lucrative oil and gas. Rivals Shell and TotalEnergies also posted bumper profits on Thursday.

BP shares were up 0.3% in early trading on Friday.

Where oil stands

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, traded at around $113.6 a barrel on Friday morning, up roughly 2.5% on the week, after falling more than 6% on Monday as diplomacy over the Iran war seemingly gathered pace.

That is still far above the roughly $72 per barrel that Brent fetched before the Iran war began in late February.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate stood at around $104.2 a barrel, up roughly 1.5% on the week.

BP has also raised the oil price it uses to value its assets, and now assumes Brent will average $87 a barrel this year, up from $70, both adjusted for inflation to 2024 prices.

It expects supply disruptions in the Middle East to last into 2027, and refining margins to "remain elevated" in the final quarter of this year.