BP increases staff cuts to 6,200 and signals further possible reductions

Powys County Times

a day ago

BP has revealed an extra 1,500 jobs and 1,200 contractor roles are being axed across its global workforce by the end of the year and signalled possible further cuts as it ramps up cost savings.
The oil giant said it now expects 6,200 jobs to go – about 15% of its office-based workforce – which is higher than the 4,700 cuts announced at the start of the year, with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI) to help drive cost efficiencies.
BP also said it had already slashed 3,200 contractor roles since January, with another 1,200 to go by the end of 2025, adding it will 'continue to rigorously review the remaining contractor activity across our businesses and functions'.
The group raised the possibility of further cuts as bosses unveiled plans to look for more cost savings and conduct a 'thorough' review of its portfolio as it comes under pressure from shareholders.
Its 100,000-strong worldwide workforce will be reviewed further as part of the new push, it confirmed.
BP did not give a country breakdown of the extra job cuts this year, but said they will go across its UK and overseas sites.
The firm employed about 14,000 UK workers at the start of 2025.
It comes as chief executive Murray Auchincloss pledged the FTSE 100 firm would do 'better for its investors' and said there was 'much more to do' under its current three-year plan.
BP has been under pressure from shareholders to boost profits and cut costs, with activist investor Elliott Management recently taking a 5% stake in the group.
Half-year profits on Tuesday showed profits tumbled by nearly a third as weaker oil prices weighed on earnings, although it posted a better-than-expected performance for the second quarter.
It reported a 32% fall in underlying replacement cost profits – the group's preferred profit measure – to 3.73 billion US dollars (£2.81 billion) for the six months to June 30.
2Q has been another strong quarter, both operationally and strategically. We are delivering our plan to grow the upstream and focus the downstream.
— bp (@bp_plc) August 5, 2025
Underlying profits fell 15% year-on-year to 2.35 billion dollars (£1.77 billion) between April and June, although this was a significant improvement from 1.38 billion dollars (£1.04 billion) in the first quarter and better than most analysts had forecast, helping shares lift nearly 2%.
BP is already working on a plan announced in February to cut costs by up to five billion dollars (£3.8 billion) by the end of 2027.
It has also said it will offload 20 billion dollars (£15.1 billion) of assets by the end of 2027.
The group's results showed it has already stripped out 900 million dollars (£677 million) in costs over the first half, or 1.7 billion dollars (£1.3 billion) since 2023.
BP's aims to ramp up its overhaul process follows talks with incoming chairman Albert Manifold who starts next month, Mr Auchincloss said.
Mr Auchincloss said: 'He and I have been in discussions and have agreed that we will conduct a thorough review of our portfolio of businesses to ensure we are maximising shareholder value moving forward.
'We are also initiating a further cost review and, whilst we will not compromise on safety, we are doing this with a view to being best in class in our industry.'
'BP can and will do better for its investors,' he added.
In a presentation to analysts and investors, Mr Auchincloss said AI was playing a key part in its overhaul, adding 'technology is helping improve capital productivity and drive cost reductions across the portfolio'.
In another move to appease shareholders, the FTSE 100 firm also said it would buy back another 750 million dollars (£565 million) in shares and hike the quarterly dividend payout by 4%.
Mr Auchincloss said: 'We are two quarters into a 12-quarter plan and are laser-focused on delivery of our four key targets – and while we should be encouraged by our early progress, we know there's much more to do.'
Mr Manifold was recently named to replace incumbent chairman Helge Lund after a difficult past few years in the role.