BP second-quarter profit more than doubles amid Middle East conflict

BP's after-tax profit reached $3.91 billion in the April–June period, more than double the $1.62 billion recorded a year earlier, according to the company's earnings statement. Revenue jumped 47% year on year to $70 billion as the conflict disrupted global fossil fuel supplies.

The five largest Western energy companies — BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell and TotalEnergies — together earned nearly $47 billion in net profit during the second quarter, with earnings multiplied amid the US–Iran conflict. BP chief executive Meg O'Neill described the period as one of the most disrupted in the global energy market.

O'Neill, who became CEO in April, said the company was "not making the most of its potential" and acknowledged that recent performance had not met expectations. BP has trimmed its clean energy investment ahead of her appointment, shifting focus back to oil and gas. However, the North Sea business is not part of that future: on Friday the company announced plans to sell the unit.

The group's underlying profit, which strips out certain items, more than doubled to $5.7 billion in the quarter, beating expectations. BP also raised its quarterly dividend by 4%, and its share price rose 0.5% in early London trading after the update.

O'Neill outlined several divestments: the sale of the Gelsenkirchen refinery in Germany, an agreement to sell the retail business in Austria, and an intention to sell the North Sea business in the UK. She also announced plans to sell Archaea, BP's biogas business in the US.

The company is also trying to move past internal turmoil. At the April annual meeting, investors rejected a resolution that would have scaled back climate reporting requirements. A month later, BP removed chairman Albert Manifold, citing "serious concerns" about governance, oversight and conduct; he denied the allegations.

O'Neill, who spent 23 years at ExxonMobil and previously led Australia's Woodside Energy, is the first external CEO appointed in BP's 117-year history. She replaced Murray Auchincloss, who stepped down after less than two years in the role.