BP’s underlying replacement cost profit reached $8.46 billion in the third quarter, nearly four times its year-earlier level, as energy markets faced disruption linked to the Iran war, The Independent reported.
The newspaper said BP’s preferred earnings measure totaled $8.46 billion for the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with $2.21 billion in the same period a year earlier. It described the result as far above forecasts but did not identify an estimate. The Independent also reported that Shell posted $10.81 billion in third-quarter profit on Thursday.
BP Chief Executive Meg O’Neill said the company’s refineries were “running close to capacity” to sustain oil supplies as conflict in the Middle East unsettled energy and fuel markets, according to The Independent. The newspaper said the Strait of Hormuz shipping route remained closed.
Global Witness claimed that BP’s results brought the combined profits of Europe’s six largest oil companies to $89 billion so far in 2026. Jonathan Noronha-Gant of Global Witness said people across Europe were facing higher living costs and difficulty heating their homes, and urged oil companies to contribute more toward environmental damage.
The Independent reported that calls to increase taxes on oil and gas companies were mounting, while the Oct. 28 budget left levies on the sector unchanged.
The debate also reflects questions about how producers manage unusually strong returns. Reuters previously reported that RBC Capital Markets analyst Biraj Borkhataria viewed the earnings season as a test of whether oil companies would maintain their spending plans amid a history of investment swings. EconoTimes covered that debate in its earlier report on oil majors’ spending plans.
BP is scheduled to provide a strategy and outlook update on Dec. 15, according to the earlier EconoTimes coverage.
