BP has sparked outrage after reporting first-quarter profits of $3.2bn (£2.4bn), more than double the $1.38bn it made in the same period last year. The energy company credited 'exceptional oil trading' for its highest quarterly profit since 2023, as it capitalised on surging global oil prices following the war in Iran.
In her first results as BP's new chief executive, Meg O'Neill said that, despite facing 'an environment of conflict and complexity', the company was playing its part to 'keep oil, gas and refined products flowing'. The global energy market has faced the greatest supply crisis in history, according to the International Energy Agency, after Iran throttled exports by seizing control of the Strait of Hormuz.
Campaigners condemned the profits, saying they came at the expense of consumers. Maja Darlington of Greenpeace UK said the war had been 'an entirely predictable disaster for everyone except the oil industry. BP's profits are booming, with Trump's bombs bringing billions for them and bigger bills for us.' Patrick Galey of Global Witness added: 'It is horrifying to see BP's profits grow as millions suffer the fallout from the US-Israel war on Iran.'
The profits have reignited calls for higher windfall taxes on oil companies. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has ruled out universal support but said the government would 'capture the profits made in the UK through the windfall tax'. The energy profits levy, set at 38% after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, brings the headline tax rate on UK upstream oil and gas activities to 78%.
Simon Francis of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition urged the government to provide emergency support for the hardest-hit households and accelerate the shift to renewables. The war in Iran is forecast to push household energy bills to nearly £2,000 a year from July.
