BP (British Petroleum)
Profile
BP (formerly British Petroleum) is a fossil fuel exploration company that was founded in 1909 to drill for oil in Iran (then known as Persia). It has been responsible for numerous catastrophic accidents around the world such as the death of 13 workers when its Sea Gem oil rig collapsed in the North Sea in 1965; a 2005 explosion at its Texas City refinery that killed 15; and most recently, the death of 11 people on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, that also caused lasting damage to the ocean environment.
petroleum, natural gas, motor fuels, aviation fuels, petrochemicals
Violations
| Top 5 Offense Groups (Groups Defined) | Penalty Total | Number of Records |
|---|---|---|
| environment-related offenses | $27,849,067,759 | 205 |
| financial offenses | $525,000,000 | 1 |
| competition-related offenses | $333,367,169 | 4 |
| consumer-protection-related offenses | $255,315,000 | 2 |
| government-contracting-related offenses | $160,001,800 | 5 |
(May 9, 2021)
Stories
Israel has just given BP licences to drill for gas off the coast of Gaza. So, people blockaded its head office.
On Wednesday 6 December, dozens of activists from Fossil Free London assembled outside BP’s London headquarters to protest Israel’s approval of 12 new licences for natural gas exploration off the west coast of Gaza to
BP projects have helped fund Azerbaijan military aggression, say campaigners
Exclusive: Global Witness claims UK firm has indirectly helped fund aggression against ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh
Blast at BP Texas Refinery in '05 Foreshadowed Gulf Disaster
TEXAS CITY, TEXAS -- Ever since the Deepwater Horizon exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, David Senko has been tallying the similarities between what he calls "my blast" in 2005 and this new BP disaster.
BP ditches plans to drill for oil in the Great Australian Bight
BP has decided not to go ahead with its controversial plans to drill for oil in the commonwealth marine reserve in the Great Australian Bight.
The 'well from hell' – my fight with BP to film Deepwater Horizon
When you start working on a film, you make your plans. First, there’s the script development, sharpening the screenplay, making sure that characters resonate and pop and are as colourful as they can be.
BP platform leaks 95 tonnes of oil into North Sea
About 95 tonnes of oil have been leaked into the North Sea from a BP platform, the company has said.
Senators vow fresh scrutiny of BP's plans to drill for oil in Great Australian Bight
BP’s plans to drill for oil in the pristine marine reserve of the Great Australian Bight will come under fresh scrutiny, as senators seek to reinstate a
Lawyers lodge complaint over BP's 'misleading' ad campaign
Environmental lawyers have lodged a complaint against a multimillion pound global advertising campaign by BP, which they said was misleading the public with its claims of commitment to a low carbon future.
BP hired firm linked to bribery scandal, Panama Papers reveal
BP signed a multimillion-dollar contract for work in Iraq with a firm that had been linked to corruption allegations in the country one year previously, the Panama Papers reveal.
EU dropped climate policies after BP threat of oil industry 'exodus'
The EU abandoned or weakened key proposals for new environmental protections after receiving a letter from a top BP executive which warned of an exodus of the oil industry from Europe if the proposals went ahead.
BP shareholders reject chief Bob Dudley's £14m pay deal
image copyrightPA
BP oil spill: judge grants final approval for $20bn settlement
A federal judge in New Orleans has granted final approval to an estimated $20bn settlement, resolving years of litigation over the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
BP to end Tate sponsorship after 26 years
BP is to end its 26-year sponsorship of the Tate next year.
BP chief receives 20% pay hike despite record loss and 7,000 axed jobs
Bob Dudley, the chief executive of BP, earned nearly $20m last year – at a time when the company ran up the biggest losses in its financial history and axed thousands of jobs.
The What Next? art campaign must tackle sticky questions like BP at Tate | Mel Evans
This week sees the national launch of What Next?, a network of theatres, museums and dance companies calling for public support for the arts.
Shell Arctic drilling 'risky' - ex-BP boss Lord Browne
image copyrightGetty Images
BP fights to blow away gas market rigging case
The weekend before the Lehman Brothers collapse unleashed a financial cyclone, a real one made landfall on the Gulf of Mexico.
Hurricane Ike tore across the Texas coast on September 13 2008, knocking out much of the region’s oil and natural gas production.
Letters: Question BP's influence in Climate Action Plan
Regarding “BP gifts $2 million to city for climate plan,” (A3, July 23): BP’s $2 million grant for the Climate Action Plan may be a step towards healing past
- Adventure in Oil: The Story of British Petroleum by Henry Longhurst (Sidgwick and Jackson, 1959).
- Drowning in Oil: BP and the Reckless Pursuit of Profit by Loren C. Steffy (McGraw-Hill, 2011).
- Some Common Concerns: Imagining BP’s Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey Pipelines System by PLATFORM et al. (2002).
- The History of the British Petroleum Company: The Developing Years, 1901-1932 by R.W. Ferrier (Cambridge University Press, 1982).
- The Seven Sisters: The Great Oil Companies and the World They Made by Anthony Sampson (Viking Press, 1975).
- Green Words, Dirty Deeds: A PIRG Expose of BP Amoco's Greenwashing by Athan Manuel of the U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund (October 1999).
Activism
Greenpeace stage ‘socially distanced protest’ at BP AGM
Allister Thomas | Energy Voice | May 27, 2020
Greenpeace is staging a “socially distanced protest” outside BP’s London headquarters as the energy giant is due to begin its annual general meeting.
Activists try to occupy British Museum in protest against BP ties
Aaron Walawalkar | The Guardian | February 8, 2020
Dozens of activists have coated themselves in plaster and are trying to occupy the British Museum overnight in a bid to pressure the institution to cut ties with oil corporation BP.
Climate protests shut BP's London headquarters on CEO's first day
Ron Bousso | Reuters | February 5, 2020
Climate protesters forced BP to temporarily shut down its London headquarters on Wednesday, the first day in office for the oil and gas company's new CEO Bernard Looney.
BP's "Beyond Petroleum" Campaign Losing its Sheen
Anne Landman | PR Watch | May 3, 2010
Back in July, 2000, British Petroleum launched a high-profile, $200 million public relations ad campaign designed by Ogilvy & Mather to position the company as environmentally-friendly.
& Lawsuits
Investigation into 2010 BP oil spill finds failures, poor testing and ongoing risks
The Guardian | June 5, 2014
A federal board investigation into the 2010 BP oil spill concludes that a last-ditch safety device on the underwater well had multiple failures, wasn't tested properly and still poses a risk for many rigs drilling today.
Deepwater Horizon Accident Investigation Report SEC
United States Securities Exchange Commission | September 8, 2010
This is the report of an internal BP incident investigation team. The report does not represent the views of any individual or entity other than the investigation team. The investigation team has produced the report exclusively for and at the request of BP.
BP protest... Labor Beat video shows Refinery Strikers Protest at Chicago BP Headquarters...
Larry Duncan | Substance News | March 25, 2015
n March 19, 2015 a big contingent of striking BP refinery workers from Whiting, IN put on a protest rally in front of the multi-billion dollar corporation's Chicago headquarters in the Chicago Mercantile Exchange building. They were from USW Local 7-1, which includes about 1,100 members. They were joined by members from they Chicago Teachers Union.
Financials
Note: Most recent list is not always the most complete list.
Croctail Subsidiary Tool using the CorpWatch API - This API uses automated parsers to extract the subsidiary relationship information from Exhibit 21 of companies' 10-K filings with the SEC.
- BP Croctail
Click here for the latest list.
Political Influence
OpenSecrets.org Profile of BP (British Petroleum)
& Evasion
Special Report: How oil majors shift billions in profits to island tax havens
Tom Bergin, Ron Bousso | Reuters | December 9, 2020
Bermuda and the Bahamas aren’t exactly big players in the oil-and-gas world. They don’t produce any of the fuels at all. Yet the islands are deep wells of profit for European oil giant Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
How BP avoids paying any tax in the UK
Behind the Logo | August 1, 2019
It’s defenders often claim that it pays large amounts of tax in the UK, so we all benefit from its business activities.