BP will slash thousands of jobs from its global workforce, amounting to 5 per cent of its staff. It comes in an effort to save billions in costs to appease its worried shareholders, the petrol giant has confirmed today (Thursday, January 16).
The oil company reportedly told staff on Tuesday that it would cut 4,700 jobs and scrap another 3,000 contractor positions, after its chief executive promised to reduce the company’s costs by at least $2bn (£1.6bn) by the end of 2026.
Murray Auchincloss said he understood and recognised the “uncertainty this brings for everyone whose job may be at risk” and also “the effect it can have on colleagues and teams”. He said: “We began a multiyear programme to simplify and focus BP last year – strengthening our competitiveness and building in resilience as we lower our costs, drive performance improvement and play to our distinctive capabilities.
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“We have got more we need to do through this year, next year and beyond, but we are making strong progress as we position BP to grow as a simpler, more focused, higher-value company.” BP employs 87,800 people worldwide.
BP’s shares have fallen by about 7 per cent in the past year. It comes two days after BP warned that weaker oil and gas production would affect its fourth-quarter results for 2024. According to a Bloomberg report, the company has stopped or paused 30 projects since last June to focus on the ones that make the most money.
Alongside this, one of its “key” plans was to digitalise further, which will see artificial intelligence (AI) pushed across more departments, including engineering and marketing. BP’s rivals have seen their market share climb by eight per cent in the past year.
It marks a worrying time for the petrol giant, which is used by drivers nationwide.