BP profits boosted by crude oil price rally

2017 was one of the strongest years in the company’s recent history

The firm is among a string of oil majors benefiting from climbing prices (Reuters)

Oil giant BP has cheered one of the strongest years in the company’s recent history after a hike in the cost of crude helped annual profits more than double.

The energy firm saw underlying replacement cost profit – BP’s preferred income measure – soar to $6.2bn (£4.5bn) for 2017, up from $2.6bn the year before.

On a fourth-quarter basis, BP chalked up another rise at $2.1bn, climbing from $400m over the same three-month period in 2016.

BP is among a string of oil majors benefiting from climbing prices, having seen Brent crude hit $70 per barrel last month – its highest level in more than three years.

Group chief executive Bob Dudley said: “2017 was one of the strongest years in BP’s recent history.

“We delivered operationally and financially, with very strong earnings in the downstream, upstream production up 12 per cent, and our finances rebalanced.

“We enter the second year of our five-year plan with real momentum, increasingly confident that we can continue to deliver growth across our business, improving cash flows and returns for shareholders out to 2021 and beyond.”

PA