BP has crashed to a $1bn loss in the final quarter of the year as low oil prices and more writedowns hammered its results.
Its chief executive, Bob Dudley, warned the industry had now entered a “challenging new phase” of reduced crude prices clearly signalling he expected no quick bounce back for the value of Brent.
The $969m (£645m) replacement cost loss in the final three months of the year compared with a profit of $1.5bn for the same period last year. The underlying replacement cost loss – a “clean” figure preferred by analysts – came in at $2.2bn, compared to $2.8bn last time.
Shares in BP fell over 2% in early trading despite the company raising the dividend for investors to 10c.
The troubled oil company, which has in the past been a subject of takeover speculation, said it would be slashing its spending for 2015 to $20bn, down from a target of over $24bn in 2014.
BP also revealed it had so far spent $43.5bn on fines and other liabilities resulting from the Gulf of Mexico blowout. The company admits it could still face charges of $13.7bn under a Clean Water Act but is hopeful it can avoid this.
“We have now entered a new and challenging phase of low oil prices through the near and medium term,” said Bob Dudley, BP group chief executive.
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