BP has seen its shares rise by 3.5% and profits have soared as the company continues its extensive divestment programme. BP is set to net approximately US$ 12 billion from the recent sale of its stake in TNK-BP to Russian giant Rosneft.

Net profit for the previous quarter was US$ 5.5 billion, up from US$ 5.2 billion a year earlier and well up from a loss of US$ 1.34 billion in the previous quarter. The company did face an increase of US$ 500 million to its depreciation bill, but this was more than outweighed by the fact that purchases were reduced by more than US$ 5 billion.

The company’s overall production had slipped by 3% to 2.26 million bpd; this, however, is expected to improve towards the end of the year. A statement from BP said, “Production is expected to increase in the fourth quarter as the maintenance season completes and the benefit of new projects continues, but offset partially by the timing of Gulf of Mexico and North Sea divestments expected to completed in the fourth quarter … BP’s share of TNK-BP production in the quarter was 1 million bpd, slightly more than in the same period last year.”

Edited from various sources by David Bizley