BP agrees to sell US onshore wind business as it shifts back to oil
The company said it would sell its share of 10 windfarms, which generate enough clean energy to power more than 500,000 US homes, to the New York-headquartered LS Power.
The terms of BP's deal with the power and energy infrastructure company were not disclosed. But the value of the windfarms, nine of which are operated by BP, is understood to be about $2bn (£1.5bn).
The sale is part of BP's plan to offload $20bn in assets 'to simplify and focus the business' after a failed attempt to reinvent the oil multinational as a net zero energy company, and as it comes under pressure over its sluggish share price.
BP said it was 'no longer the best owners' to take the wind business forward. Renewable energy in the US has faced increasing pressure under Donald Trump's presidency.
The deal emerged weeks after one of the architects of BP's failed green agenda, Giulia Chierchia, stepped down from her role as executive in charge of sustainability strategy to 'pursue other opportunities' outside the company as it shifted back towards oil and gas production. She will not be replaced at BP, the company said.
BP's botched green ambitions have contributed to a collapse in the company's share price over recent years, which has made the 120-year-old company easy prey.
Shell was forced last month to deny market speculation that it planned to snap up its smaller rival. Shell has lost almost a third of its market value in the past year and is now worth about £58bn.
It reported interest in BP emerged months after the activist hedge fund Elliott Management amassed a stake in the company to agitate for changes to BP's strategy and its board.
So far the turnaround plan spearheaded by BP's chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, has failed to convince investors that the company can recover from a difficult few years during which its rivals have thrived by focusing on fossil fuels while global markets have been volatile.
Sign up to Business Today
Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning
after newsletter promotion
Auchincloss plans to shore up BP's balance sheets by completing $3b-$4bn of divestments this year, and has already agreed deals worth $1.5bn. He is expected to set out further progress on the divestment drive alongside the company's financial results for the second quarter in the first week of August. Meanwhile, BP is searching for a new chair to replace Helge Lund.
William Lin, the head of the company's gas and low-carbon energy business, said: 'We have been clear that while low-carbon energy has a role to play in a simpler, more focused BP, we will continue to rationalise and optimise our portfolio to generate value.'
'The onshore US wind business has great assets and fantastic people, but we have concluded we are no longer the best owners to take it forward,' Lin added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
39 minutes ago
- Times
BHP pushes back potash mine opening after $1.7bn cost overrun
BHP has warned of a $1.7 billion cost overrun at its project to develop one of the world's biggest potash mines in Canada. The world's largest mining company said that its Jansen mine in Saskatchewan would now not start up until mid 2027, reverting its original schedule and ditching its plans to accelerate first production to the end of next year. BHP approved the first stage of the Jansen development in 2021, its first foray into potash, aiming to meet what it believes will be growing demand for the fertiliser ingredient as the world's population grows and arable land comes under pressure. • BHP boss warns Trump tariffs could be 'significant' hit to trade Mike Henry, BHP's chief executive, said that the first stage of Jansen was now estimated to cost between $7 billion and $7.4 billion, up from $5.7 billion originally. 'The estimated cost increase is driven by inflationary and real cost-escalation pressures, design development and scope changes, and our current assessment of lower productivity outcomes over the construction period,' BHP said, adding that Jansen stage one is now 68 per cent complete. The company approved a $4.9 billion investment in stage two of Jansen in 2023 but said it was now considering delaying first production from the second phase by two years to its financial year ending June 2031, citing the 'potential for additional potash supply coming to market in the medium term'. Analyst at Jefferies said that the '[capital expenditure] blowout at Jansen is the clear negative' and warned that 'the fundamental outlook for potash is very challenging'. The delays and cost overruns overshadowed an otherwise strong trading update including record iron ore and copper production ahead of BHP's annual results for the year to the end of June. The Australian miner was a FTSE 100 group until 2022 when it unified its dual company structure behind a primary listing in Australia, retaining only a secondary listing in London. It reported net profits of $7.9 billion in its last financial year, to June 2024 from commodities including iron ore, copper, steelmaking coal and nickel. Copper output rose 8 per cent year on year to top two million tonnes for the first time. Henry said it was 'a record level of production in a commodity critical to urbanisation, digitisation and electrification'. Iron ore output rose 1 per cent to a record 263 million tonnes. 'The efficiency of our infrastructure hubs continues to strengthen performance with rail, port and technology investments delivering tangible production outcomes,' Henry said. Shares in mining companies including BHP were hard hit by President Trump's tariff announcements in April on fears of weaker economic growth hitting commodity demand, but have since recovered their losses. Henry said that commodity demand so far this year had remained resilient, reflecting 'China's ongoing ability to grow its overall export base despite a significant decline in exports to the USA, and its ability to deliver robust domestic demand despite the dislocation in the property sector'. 'Copper and steel demand have benefited from a sharp acceleration in renewable energy investment, electricity grid build out, strong machinery exports and EV sales. While slower economic growth and a fragmenting trading system remain potential headwinds, stimulus efforts by China and the USA would help to mitigate the near-term impact,' he said.
Reuters
40 minutes ago
- Reuters
Apple sues YouTuber over leaked details of unreleased iPhone update
July 18 (Reuters) - Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab has sued YouTuber Jon Prosser and another man in California federal court for allegedly stealing trade secrets related to its upcoming iPhone operating system update and leaking them to the internet. Apple said in the lawsuit filed on Thursday, opens new tab that Michael Ramacciotti used an Apple employee's phone to send details about the forthcoming iOS 26 to Prosser, who outlined the confidential updates in a video on his YouTube page Front Page Tech. Prosser told Reuters on Friday that he "certainly did not 'plot' to steal information nor did I know how it was obtained originally." He said he looked forward to presenting his side of the case to the court. Ramacciotti and a spokesperson for Front Page Tech did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the complaint on Friday. A spokesperson for Apple declined to comment. Prosser first disclosed details of iOS 26, which Apple is set to release this fall, in a YouTube video in January. According to the complaint, Prosser convinced Ramacciotti — a product analyst and video editor who Apple said "needed money" — to break into his Apple employee friend's phone and send Prosser secret information about the new operating system. Apple said that an anonymous whistleblower told the company about the scheme in April. The company in its lawsuit requested an unspecified amount of monetary damages and a court order for Prosser and Ramacciotti to stop using its trade secrets. The case is Apple Inc v. Ramacciotti, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, No. 3:25-cv-06043. For Apple: Richard Hung and Mary Prendergast of Morrison & Foerster For Prosser and Ramacciotti: attorney information not yet available
Reuters
40 minutes ago
- Reuters
Bristol Myers drug fails main goal in cancer-linked anemia trial
July 18 (Reuters) - Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY.N), opens new tab said on Friday its blockbuster drug Reblozyl in combination with another therapy failed to meet the main goal of a late-stage trial to treat anemia caused by a rare bone marrow cancer. The study did not achieve statistically significant results in helping patients with myelofibrosis become free from red blood cell transfusions for any 12-week period during the first 24 weeks of treatment. The miss could signal long-term challenges for the company as future revenues rely on expanding the use of key drugs, Raymond James analysts said. They noted several missed opportunities for broader approvals, including Sotyktu in ulcerative colitis and Crohn's, Camzyos in heart disease, Opdualag in early-stage melanoma, and Cobenfy in schizophrenia. The company, however, remained upbeat about the drug's prospects and said more patients receiving Reblozyl saw a reduction in the number of transfusions needed and an increase in hemoglobin levels, a key measure of anemia. The side effects seen in the trial were similar to those previously reported for Reblozyl. "It is promising to see that Reblozyl led to clinically relevant improvement of anemia for patients with myelofibrosis," said Anne Kerber, head of hematology, oncology, and cell therapy at Bristol Myers. Reblozyl is already approved for certain types of anemia related to other blood disorders, including myelodysplastic syndromes and beta-thalassemia. Bristol Myers recorded $1.77 billion in global sales of Reblozyl in 2024. The late-stage trial in myelofibrosis patients tested Reblozyl with a Janus kinase inhibitor drug, a class of medicines that works by slowing down the immune system. Myelofibrosis is a type of cancer that scars the bone marrow, inhibiting production of healthy blood cells. Reblozyl's failure in the trial might be positive for Disc Medicine (IRON.O), opens new tab, as investors might look favorably at its hepcidin portfolio, given the strength of data and limited treatment options, BMO Capital Markets analysts said. Shares of Disc Medicine rose 4%, while Bristol Myers slipped 1% in morning trading.
