Business | Back to petroleum

BP is underperforming and under pressure

Yet another strategic U-turn is on the cards

A BP petrol station againast a sunset in South Africa.
Photograph: Getty Images
|NEW YORK

Ever since John Browne vowed to turn BP green some 25 years ago, the British oil giant has experienced a series of embarrassing mishaps. That includes major safety lapses, such as a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and the departure of several bosses. Yet its biggest blunder has been the bungled attempts to profitably decarbonise its business, which were made all the worse by its premature promise to go “beyond petroleum”.

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From the February 15th 2025 edition

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