BP puts UK North Sea business up for sale as UK PM open to drilling

(Alliance News) - BP PLC on Friday announced that it is putting its North Sea business up for a "potential sale", after 60 years of production.

The decision forms part of the London-based oil major's "ongoing portfolio review", it said.

BP shares were up 0.4% to 544.90 pence early Friday in London.

"The UK has been our home for more than 100 years and will continue to play an important role in our future. We're proud of the jobs we create, the contribution we make to the UK economy, and the work we do to keep energy flowing every day," said Chief Executive Officer Meg O'Neill. "The North Sea remains integral to the UK's energy system."

She added: "However, as we focus our portfolio and direct capital to our highest-value opportunities, we believe our North Sea business will be better positioned as part of another company. It has world-class people, resilient assets and a proud heritage, and it is precisely these qualities that can attract an owner ready to back its next chapter.

"We are seeking an outcome that recognises that value."

The announcement comes after UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham left the door open for future North Sea drilling as he confirmed he told US President Donald Trump "we can't ignore" the resources there, PA reports.

Burnham said he told Trump he would "take a pragmatic approach when it comes to the North Sea", adding: "There is a resource there. When people are struggling, we can't ignore that."

Labour's 2024 manifesto said the party would not issue new North Sea licences.

BP's North Sea business has five production hubs – two in the central North Sea, and three west of Shetland – and produced 117,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2025, PA reported.

Some 1,100 staff work for the North Sea business, part of BP's approximately 13,960-strong UK workforce.

On Thursday, the Financial Times reported that BP plans to cut 700 "non-frontline" jobs in its upstream business to create a flatter, simpler organisational structure and save costs.

BP will cut positions in its upstream division, as an internal email warned of "potential oversupply and lower oil and gas prices", meaning BP has to be "competitive at the bottom of the cycle, not just the top", the newspaper reported.

The email to staff seen by the FT was sent by Gordon Birrell, BP's executive vice-president for upstream. In it, he said the cuts will see the number of group senior leaders reduced by more than 20%.

By Tom Waite, Alliance News editor

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