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BP

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BP p.l.c. is a major British multinational oil and gas company.

BPAmericasHQ
BPAmericasHQ

It is headquartered in London, England. The company is classified as an oil and gas "supermajor." This means it is one of the largest companies globally when measured by profits and revenues. BP is a vertically integrated company. This term means the company operates in every stage of the energy industry. It handles exploration and extraction to find resources. It also manages refining and distribution to prepare and move fuel. Finally, it handles marketing and power generation.

Thunder Horse Semisub
Thunder Horse Semisub

To understand how BP works, we must look at its complex business chain. First, the company performs exploration to locate oil and gas deposits. Next, it moves to extraction to pull these resources from the earth. Once extracted, the crude material undergoes refining. Refining is the process of cleaning and changing the oil into usable products. After refining, the company manages distribution to move the fuel to markets.

Oil depot, Frontignan, Hérault 01
Oil depot, Frontignan, Hérault 01

The final step is marketing, where the products are sold to consumers. This includes operating around 21,200 service stations worldwide. These stations use the BP brand globally. In the United States, they use the Amoco brand. In Germany, they use the Aral brand.

A modern BP gas station or filling station in the United States 05
A modern BP gas station or filling station in the United States 05

The history of BP began with the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC). This company was founded in 1909 as a subsidiary of the Burmah Oil Company.

William Knox D'Arcy
William Knox D'Arcy

It was established to exploit oil discoveries in Iran. In 1908, geologists found a large amount of oil at Masjed Soleyman. This was the first commercially significant oil find in the Middle East. William Knox D'Arcy obtained permission to explore this region. In 1935, the company changed its name to the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC). By 1954, it officially adopted the name British Petroleum.

BP Motor Spirit, 1922
BP Motor Spirit, 1922

The company later merged with Amoco in 1998 to become BP Amoco p.l.c. The name was eventually shortened to BP p.l.c. in 2001.

Political changes significantly shaped the company's growth and ownership. In 1914, the British government acquired a controlling interest of 50.0025% in APOC. This was encouraged by Winston Churchill for the British navy. The navy needed to switch from coal to oil for its warships. Between 1979 and 1987, the British government privatized the company in stages. This meant the company moved from being majority state-owned to being privately owned. In the 1950s, the company faced major challenges in Iran. The Iranian government nationalized the oil industry in 1951. This led to a coup in 1953, which allowed AIOC to return to Iran. Later, a holding company called Iranian Oil Participants Ltd was founded in 1954 to manage these operations.

BP is a massive economic force with significant global rankings. In 2024, it was the fifth-largest investor-owned oil company in the world. This ranking follows ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, and TotalEnergies. The company reported revenues of US$194.6 billion in 2024.

Aral
Aral

Its Fortune Global 500 rank was 33rd in 2024. As of 2022, BP had a market capitalization of US$98.36 billion. This placed it 122nd in the world. The company is a member of the FTSE 100 Index on the London Stock Exchange. It also has a huge presence in the United States through BP America.

BPAmericasHQ
BPAmericasHQ

Despite its success, BP has been involved in several major safety and environmental incidents. In 1967, the wreck of the Torrey Canyon caused Britain's largest oil spill.

HY jaune et vert2
HY jaune et vert2

In 2005, an explosion at the Texas City refinery killed 15 workers.

BP PLANT EXPLOSION-1 lowres2
BP PLANT EXPLOSION-1 lowres2

The company's most severe catastrophe was the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This was the largest accidental release of oil into marine waters in history.

Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling unit on fire 2010
Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling unit on fire 2010

The spill caused severe environmental and economic consequences. It cost the company more than $4.5 billion in fines and penalties. It also included $18.7 billion in Clean Water Act penalties and other claims. In total, the spill cost the company more than $65 billion.

Today, BP operates as a complex global entity with connections to many systems. It has operations in 61 different countries. The company manages massive infrastructure, from offshore drilling units to vast networks of service stations.

Aerial view of prudhoe bay
Aerial view of prudhoe bay

It also participates in the global energy market through trading and power generation. Its history shows how the company has navigated changing geopolitics, from the Middle East to the North Sea. The company continues to be a central figure in the global energy industry and the broader economy.

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🖼️ Images & Media (23)
File:William Knox D'Arcy.jpg
William Knox D'Arcy.jpg
File:BP Motor Spirit, 1922.jpg
BP Motor Spirit, 1922.jpg
File:HY jaune et vert2.jpg
HY jaune et vert2.jpg
File:Steven Koonin BP 2005-02-22.jpg
Steven Koonin BP 2005-02-22.jpg
File:Obama-hayward.jpg
Obama-hayward.jpg
File:BP Connect Kapiti, New Zealand.jpg
BP Connect Kapiti, New Zealand.jpg
File:BP filling station, Pudsey Road (geograph 4680793).jpg
BP filling station, Pudsey Road (geograph...
File:BP Gas Station in Tokai, Cape Town.jpg
BP Gas Station in Tokai, Cape Town.jpg
File:A_modern_BP_gas_station_or_filling_station_in_the_United_States_05.jpg
A_modern_BP_gas_station_or_filling_station...
File:BP North Sea Headquarters - geograph.org.uk - 937691.jpg
BP North Sea Headquarters -...
File:Hedon Clough and the BP Chemicals site at Saltend - geograph.org.uk - 145508.jpg
Hedon Clough and the BP Chemicals site at...
File:BPAmericasHQ.JPG
BPAmericasHQ.JPG

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