All oil companies reinvent themselves but BP makes more noise about it. The company that gave us the modern big oil company model, then “Beyond Petroleum”, now plans to become an “integrated energy company focused on delivering solutions for customers”. Cynics might see this as a distraction from its poor quarterly results but environmentalists and, increasingly, investors see it as the path all petroleum companies must tread.
BP does have a history of transforming itself through crises. Anglo-Persian, a pioneer on the Middle East oil scene, became Anglo-Iranian in 1935, then BP in 1954 after its nationalisation and post-coup return to Iran.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, a wave of nationalisations reduced the share of Middle Eastern oil in BP’s output from 80 per cent to 10 per cent, as it remained only in Abu Dhabi. This acted as a catalyst for the rise of spot crude trading and the end of the dominant model of vertical integration that John D Rockefeller had invented in the US in the late 1800s.
Along with Shell, BP championed non-Opec oil output in new pastures, but became a “two-pipeline company” that was overly reliant on Alaska and the North Sea.
Chief executive John Browne, appointed in 1995, transformed the company. In August 1998, at a time of record low oil prices, his deal to buy smaller American rival Amoco and create the first “super-major” was a bet on scale and cost-cutting. In April 1999, he also swooped on Arco.
The collapse of the Soviet Union allowed BP to strike the "contract of the century" in Azerbaijan in 1994 and to buy half of Russia's TNK from oligarch owners in 2003, the most successful foray by a western company into the "Wild East".
Lord Browne, as he became in 2001, announced that the company’s iconic initials now stood for “Beyond Petroleum”. BP established an initially successful, if small, solar business but its ventures into the non-oil business were not more significant than those of its peers and its gas position lagged Shell’s.
Still, BP’s rebranding was ahead of its time – too far ahead for its shareholders. The renewable industry in those years was too small and dependent on subsidies. When it did grow, BP Solar lost out to competition from China.
BP has not been Big Oil's green leader recently. From 2010 to 2018, it spent about 2.3 per cent of its capital expenditure on low-carbon energy, mostly biofuels and wind. This was some way ahead of Shell and Equinor, and far surpassed American companies, but was well behind Total’s 4.3 per cent. Additionally, Shell, Total and Saudi Aramco have led recent clean-energy deal-making.
However, new chief executive Bernard Looney has been one of the most outspoken oil leaders on the need to transition to net-zero carbon emissions. Appointed in February, he immediately aimed for BP’s production to be net-zero carbon and to halve the carbon intensity of products it sells by 2050.
In June, the company divested from its petrochemical unit, the precise opposite of what national oil companies in the Middle East have been doing.
BP announced a loss last Tuesday and halved its dividend, while other European peers had small profits and good trading results. But Mr Looney overshadowed the quarterly figures with a decadal goal – to cut oil and gas output by 40 per cent by 2030 and spend $5 billion (Dh18.35bn) annually on low-carbon energy, building 50 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity, almost enough to meet the entire UK’s peak demand.
The business will be reshaped around low-carbon energy (biofuels, renewables, carbon capture and storage and the emerging fuel of hydrogen), as well as mobility (fuel retail, electric vehicles, charging and batteries) and a smaller helping of hydrocarbons.
The shift is unavoidable, given shareholder and government pressure in Europe. But it is also very risky. In the wake of the coronavirus crisis, much lower legacy oil and gas profits will have to fund projects where BP does not have a clear competitive advantage. It will have to invent a business model that is superior not just to other oil companies but also to electricity utilities and others in the new energy space.
Its mobility business is competing in growth markets – China and India - with strong and nationally favoured incumbents. The company must transform profitably in a very fluid and fast-evolving world of new energy technology, falling costs and disruptive shifts in government policy.
Smaller Spanish company Repsol already announced in 2018 that it would not seek to grow its oil and gas output anymore. If other European oil companies follow it and BP, that would mean a hole in new supplies. Even a substantial drop in world oil demand because of climate policies does not remove the need to replace the natural decline of ageing fields.
Without new investment, last year’s 100 million barrels per day of production will fall to about 20 million bpd by 2040, while even in a climate-constrained world, demand will be at least 60 million bpd.
If the gap is not filled, oil prices will rise sharply, probably precipitating an economic slowdown and even more investment in non-oil technology.
More likely, the oil battleground will be contested by American companies ExxonMobil and Chevron, leading national oil companies such as Aramco and Petronas, Chinese and Russian state-owned oil operators and new private-equity backed entities.
Those corporations cannot ignore climate change either, but for now they face less investor and public pressure.
Other European oil companies are envisaging similar transformations and may even be further along in practical terms. But, as often before, BP has been first out of the blocks in articulating its vision. For a company where spin and substance have sometimes been at odds, the most radical shift of its history demands delivery.
Robin Mills is chief executive of Qamar Energy and author of The Myth of the Oil Crisis.
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
'Top Gun: Maverick'
Rating: 4/5
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Ed Harris
Global institutions: BlackRock and KKR
US-based BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager, with $5.98 trillion of assets under management as of the end of last year. The New York firm run by Larry Fink provides investment management services to institutional clients and retail investors including governments, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, banks and charitable foundations around the world, through a variety of investment vehicles.
KKR & Co, or Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, is a global private equity and investment firm with around $195 billion of assets as of the end of last year. The New York-based firm, founded by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, invests in multiple alternative asset classes through direct or fund-to-fund investments with a particular focus on infrastructure, technology, healthcare, real estate and energy.
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
Transmission: Seven-speed auto
Power: 165hp
Torque: 241Nm
Price: Dh99,900 to Dh134,000
On sale: now
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Cry Macho
Director: Clint Eastwood
Stars: Clint Eastwood, Dwight Yoakam
Rating:**
The biog
Name: Ayisha Abdulrahman Gareb
Age: 57
From: Kalba
Occupation: Mukrema, though she washes bodies without charge
Favourite things to do: Visiting patients at the hospital and give them the support they need.
Role model: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women's Union, Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood.
Stage 3 results
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 4:42:33
2 Tadej Pocagar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:03
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana 0:01:30
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
5 Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe
6 Diego Ulissi (ITA) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:56
General Classification after Stage 3:
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 12:30:02
2 Tadej Pocagar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:07
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana 0:01:35
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:01:40
5 Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe
6 Wilco Kelderman (NED) Team Sunweb) 0:02:06
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Company%20profile
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
What is cyberbullying?
Cyberbullying or online bullying could take many forms such as sending unkind or rude messages to someone, socially isolating people from groups, sharing embarrassing pictures of them, or spreading rumors about them.
Cyberbullying can take place on various platforms such as messages, on social media, on group chats, or games.
Parents should watch out for behavioural changes in their children.
When children are being bullied they they may be feel embarrassed and isolated, so parents should watch out for signs of signs of depression and anxiety
Napoleon
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Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
The Two Popes
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce
Four out of five stars
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
The Bio
Amal likes watching Japanese animation movies and Manga - her favourite is The Ancient Magus Bride
She is the eldest of 11 children, and has four brothers and six sisters.
Her dream is to meet with all of her friends online from around the world who supported her work throughout the years
Her favourite meal is pizza and stuffed vine leaves
She ams to improve her English and learn Japanese, which many animated programmes originate in
