“BP is performing well, with safe and reliable operations, continued strategic progress and strong cash delivery. This all supports our commitment to growing distributions to shareholders over the long term and the dividend rise we announced today. After almost ten years, this is now my last quarter as CEO. In that time, we have achieved a huge amount together and I am proud to be handing over a safer and stronger BP to Bernard and his team. I am confident that under their leadership, BP will continue to successfully navigate the rapidly-changing energy landscape.” Bob Dudley group chief executive
RC profit (loss), underlying RC profit, operating cash flow excluding Gulf of Mexico oil spill payments, working capital, organic capital expenditure, net debt and gearing are non-GAAP measures. These measures and underlying production, refining availability, inventory holding gains and losses, non-operating items and fair value accounting effects are defined in the Glossary on page 32.
Cash flow strong, increased disposal plans
- Underlying replacement cost profit for the fourth quarter and full year 2019 was $2.6 billion and $10.0 billion respectively, compared to $3.5 billion and $12.7 billion for the same periods a year earlier, largely reflecting the impact of the weaker environment. Reported profit was $19 million for the fourth quarter and $4.0 billion for the full year.
- Non-operating items in the quarter included a $1.9 billion after-tax impairment charge, mainly for the disposal of US gas assets, and a $0.9 billion charge arising from the reclassification of past foreign exchange losses on the formation of BP’s new biofuels joint venture.
- Full-year operating cash flow, excluding Gulf of Mexico oil spill payments, was $28.2 billion, including a $0.3 billion working capital release (after adjusting for net inventory holding gains).
- Gulf of Mexico oil spill payments for the year totalled $2.4 billion on a post-tax basis, and are expected to be less than $1 billion in 2020.
- Maintaining capital discipline, full-year organic capital expenditure of $15.2 billion was at the bottom of the guided range. Divestments and other disposals announced since the start of 2019 now total $9.4 billion, keeping BP ahead of schedule to meet its target of $10 billion proceeds by end-2020. BP expects to announce a further $5 billion of agreed disposals by mid-2021.
- In January 2020 BP completed its announced share buyback programme.
- Net debt reduced by $1.1 billion in the quarter with gearing at 31.1%, down from 31.7% at the end of the previous quarter.
- A dividend of 10.5 cents per share was announced for the quarter, an increase of 2.4% on a year earlier.
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SOURCE: BP
