Oil major BP to cut 15 percent of workforce

LONDON - BP will cut about 15 percent of its workforce in response to the coronavirus crisis and as part of Chief Executive Bernard Looney's plan to shift the oil and gas major to renewable energy, it said on Monday.

Looney told employees in a global online call that the London-based company will cut 10,000 jobs from the current 70,100.

"We will now begin a process that will see close to 10,000 people leaving BP – most by the end of this year," Looney said in a statement.

Reuters had earlier reported the planned job cuts, citing three company sources.

BP shares were up 3.3 percent by 1230 GMT, against a 2.2 percent gain for the broader European energy sector.

The affected roles will be mostly senior office-based positions and not front-line operational staff, the company said.

About a fifth of the job cuts will take place in Britain, where BP employs 15,000 people, a company spokesman said.

Like all the world's top energy companies, BP has cut its 2020 spending plans after the coronavirus pandemic brought an unprecedented drop in demand for oil. BP has flagged a 25 percent cut to $12 billion this year and said it would find $2.5 billion in cost savings by the end of 2021 through the digitalization and integration of its businesses.

On Monday, however, Looney said the company is likely to need to cut costs even further.

BP is giving no pay rises to senior employees until March 2021 and said it is unlikely to pay any cash bonuses this year.

ENERGY TRANSITION

The job reductions are also part of Looney's drive to make the 111-year-old oil company more nimble as it prepares for the shift to low-carbon energy, the sources said.

"It was always part of the plan to make BP a leaner, faster-moving and lower-carbon company," Looney said.

The spokesman said that the coronavirus crisis "amplified and accelerated" BP's transition plans.

Looney last month announced a large round of senior management appointments, halving the size of BP's leadership team under his plan to reshape the company's structure.

Shortly after taking office in February, the 49-year-old CEO said that he was creating 11 divisions to "reinvent" BP and dismantle the traditional structure dominated by its oil and gas production business and its refining, marketing and trading division.

Chevron Corp, the second-largest U.S. oil producer, last month said that it will cut between 10 percent and 15 percent of its global workforce as part of an ongoing restructuring.

Royal Dutch Shell, meanwhile, has initiated a voluntary redundancy program.

(Reporting by Ron Bousso and Shadia Nasralla Editing by Louise Heavens and David Goodman)

-reuters-

Singapore tells foreign firms not to back gay rights rally

SINGAPORE - Singapore has warned Google, Facebook and Goldman Sachs not to interfere in the conservative city-state's internal affairs after they and other multinational corporate giants sponsored a gay rights rally at the weekend.

The government "will take steps to make it clear that foreign entities should not fund, support or influence such events held at the Speakers' Corner", the interior ministry said in statement, referring to Singapore's only legal protest area.

The warning against foreign involvement with the annual Pink Dot rally comes as Singapore's government is taking an increasingly conservative stance against gay rights.

The ministry said it had released the statement on Sunday in response to media queries about whether foreign companies can legally provide sponsorship for the event, which was held this year on June 4 and also sponsored by Twitter, BP and major banks Barclays and J.P. Morgan.

"The Government's general position has always been that foreign entities should not interfere in our domestic issues, especially political issues or controversial social issues with political overtones," said the statement.

"These are political, social or moral choices for Singaporeans to decide for ourselves. LGBT issues are one such example," it added.

In a separate statement released on Thursday, the ministry said that no action will be taken against foreign companies that sponsored the event this year.

Pink Dot's organizers defended their choice of sponsors, saying they had done all they could to comply with Singapore's laws.

"Our Corporate Sponsors that have supported us over the years are all registered and incorporated in Singapore," Pink Dot said in a statement posted on its Facebook page.

A Google spokesman said the company had supported the event since 2011, but declined to elaborate further. Other major companies who sponsored the event could not be reached for comment.

Started in 2009, the rally has grown despite a backlash from social and religious conservatives in the multi-racial nation of 5.5 million.

More than 28,000 attended last year's event but organizers said they did not keep track of attendance this year.

Gay rights movements in the wealthy city-state have grown steadily in recent years, helped by changing social norms among the younger generation and a large influx of tourists and expatriates.

However, in 2014 Singapore's top court upheld a law that criminalizes sex between men, and children's books with gay themes were moved to the adults section in public libraries.

In an interview with journalists last year, Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong said the country was not ready to legalize same-sex marriage, but added that the local gay community is not harassed or discriminated against.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Three-day rally pushes oil prices to 2015 highs

NEW YORK - Oil prices surged higher for a third straight day Tuesday, hitting late-2014 peaks on hopes of rebounding global energy demand and production cuts that could curb the supply glut.

The US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate for March delivery, soared $3.48, or seven percent, to $53.05 a barrel, the highest WTI close since December 31.

In London, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in March jumped $3.16 (5.8 percent) to settle at $57.91, its best reading since December 30.

"The strong rally continues in the oil market as both Brent and WTI front-month futures extended gains and climbed higher... supported by increased appetite amid hopes of a rebound of the global oil demand in the first half of 2015," said Myrto Sokou, analyst at Sucden brokers.

WTI has gained $8.53, or nearly 20 percent, since the rally began Friday on signs the industry is quickly tightening exploration activities.

The Baker Hughes North America rig count reported on Friday fell sharply for the week to January 30, dropping by 128 rigs to 1,937 for the week to January 30. That compared with 2,393 a year ago.

Deep cuts in capital spending by major oil companies, including new announcements Tuesday by BP and BG Group, also suggested there would be tighter supplies in the future.

"A lot of factors are at play. Obviously, the capital spending cuts just keep coming, with BP, and we're seeing one of the fastest drops of spending across the sector I can remember," said Phil Flynn of Price Futures Group.

In addition, the oil market was feeling the pinch of a weaker dollar Tuesday, he said. "It's not just about supply and demand -- the dollar definitely has an influence."

Some analysts cautioned the current oil price rebound likely would not last because supplies still far outweigh demand.

"Oil ... has enjoyed the combination of weakening supply and rising demand fundamentals to maintain its surge for another day," said Chris Beauchamp, market analyst at trading firm IG.

"Oversupply does not disappear overnight, however, and the jury is still out on whether this bounce (in prices) has much further to run."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com