The development surfaced as, in recent months, the market commentators reportedly speculated that Shell might use its rising profits to acquire BP
London-headquartered oil and gas major Shell refuted the claims that it is in talks to acquire its rival BP. The oil major said its strategy to drive growth is focused on performance, discipline and simplification, and not acquisition, Reuters reported. The development came to the surface after a report by the Wall Street Journal claimed that Shell is in early-stage discussions to purchase its British rival.
“No talks are taking place. As we have said many times before, we are sharply focused on capturing the value in Shell through continuing to focus on performance, discipline and simplification,” said a Shell spokesperson, according to Reuters. The report is just market speculation, the spokesperson added.
The development surfaced as, in recent months, the market commentators speculated that Shell might use its rising profits to purchase BP.
But this isn’t the first time that the acquisition of British energy giant BP has been in the news. In fact, the news has been around for quite some years now, mainly due to relative underperformance, particularly due to failed green energy plans, not-so-good financial results, and boardroom contentions. BP’s woes aren’t just limited to this, the energy major has lost almost a third of its market value since last one year following the failure of its chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, to convince investors that it would become a net-zero energy company.
BP’s plan to turn the company into a net-zero energy company had been put in place in early 2020 by its former chief executive, Bernard Looney. But the plan failed when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 resulted in a global energy price surge.
As of Wednesday, BP’s valuation stood at $80 billion, with net debt of around $27 billion whereas Shell’s market capitalisation stood at more than $208 billion, Reuters reported.