Apple keeps customers happy – and paying a little more each year

Does the wisdom of crowds apply to Apple? Because there is a large crowd of people who hate it. But usually with American companies that make huge amounts of money – such as mobile carriers or TV companies – the hatred comes from their own customers.

BP urges Scotland to vote against independence

BP, one of the North Sea's biggest investors, has urged Scotland to vote against independence next week, arguing that oil wealth would best be protected by remaining inside the UK.

BP chief says firm's Russia business unaffected by sanctions on Rosneft CEO

ST PETERSBURG Russia (Reuters) - Sanctions imposed on the chief executive of Rosneft over the Ukraine crisis have not impacted BP's business with the Russian oil producer, Interfax news agency quoted BP chief executive Bob Dudley as saying on Saturday.

BP appeals to US Supreme Court over Gulf oil payments

BP has appealed to the US Supreme Court over a ruling regarding how businesses must be compensated in the wake of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.

Oil giant BP sees profits fall as sell-offs hit

Oil giant BP saw profit fall in 2013 as lost income from asset sales hit.

BP loses bid over Gulf oil payouts

BP has lost an appeal to cancel the terms of its multi-billion-dollar settlement with businesses over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster.

BP wins reprieve over Gulf of Mexico payouts

Oil giant BP's attempts to limit claims over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill have been given a boost after a US appeals court halted some payments.

Pay up or dry up - Egyptian gas at a crossroads

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BP asks for temporary halt to Gulf compensation payments

BP has asked for a temporary halt to all compensation payments to people and businesses who say they lost money after the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.

BP compensation fund for Gulf oil spill victims at risk of running out

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Oil company offices raided in EU pricing probe

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BP to go ahead with $500 million Shetlands investment

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BP to buy back $8bn in shares after Russian sale

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Russia's Rosneft to invest $18 billion in old refineries, says report

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Was BP grossly negligent?

Robert Peston

The significance of the Obama administration's decision to sue BP and four other business over the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill is that the US Justice Department may try to prove gross negligence on the part of BP.

Because if BP were found to be grossly negligent, the costs for BP of the debacle could rise very significantly indeed, for two reasons.

First, it could potentially add almost $16bn or more than £10bn to the civil penalties BP would have to pay under the US Clean Water Act.

Second, it would make it much harder (perhaps impossible) for BP to recover costs it is incurring in the clean up and restitution from its co-owners of the Macondo Well, Anadarko and Mitsui.

BP says it remains confident that it was not guilty of gross negligence. But if it is wrong, the $39.9bn or £25bn it has set aside to cover the costs stemming from the disaster will prove to be too little.

A further source of uneasiness for BP's shareholders is the statement by the US Attorney General Eric Holder that under the Oil Pollution Act he is intending to prove "that these defendants are responsible for government removal costs, economic losses and environmental damages without limitation."

For once, the verdict of the market in a few minutes may be instructive.

Update 0838: Investors plainly believe that the nature of the Department of Justice's case against BP hasn't increased potential liabilities for the company in a fundamental way.

BP's shares have fallen 2.5% this morning to 465p - which takes the edge off a recent strong run in BP shares.

Source: BBC
www.bbc.co.uk

BP board to exert tougher control

(FT) -- BP's board will tighten its oversight of the company's day-to-day operations in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, its chairman has said in his first big interview since the accident.

Carl-Henric Svanberg, app­oint­ed chairman in January, said he did not consider resigning following the oil spill in April, in spite of criticism from some investors for not taking a more public role at the height of the crisis.

He said he had formed an early impression, "coming from the outside . . . how much was delegated to the executive" at BP.

"One of the key changes after the tragedy is that this is a time when logically you can review that delegation," he told the Financial Times. "We will have a higher degree of disclosure and a higher degree of discussion going forward than we have seen in the past between the executive and the board."

BP's executive team was seen as extremely powerful within the organisation, according to other industry executives. Shareholders also believe the company needed to strengthen the board in the wake of the disaster.

"If the view is that [former chief executive] Tony [Hayward] has borne the responsibility that the safety culture had not improved sufficiently, then the board was perhaps not probing enough and further change is probably still required," one UK investor in BP said.

Mr Svanberg said he and Bob Dudley, who took over as chief executive from Mr Hayward in October, were "eager to see if the board can be even more effective".

"We need to ensure that the checks and balances remain good with strong oversight and disclosure, particularly in safety," he said.

Mr Svanberg has appointed two new non-executive directors in recent weeks, Brendan Nelson and Frank L. "Skip" Bowman. Mr Nelson will succeed Douglas Flint as chairman of BP's audit committee when Mr Flint retires next year. Mr Bowman will replace DeAnne Julius, who is due to step down next year as well. BP is looking for one or two additional directors. Byron Grote, its long-serving finance director, has agreed to stay on "for a little bit longer", Mr Svanberg said.

The accident on April 20 has battered BP's reputation. One of Mr Svanberg's few moments of public exposure was an unfortunate gaffe when he said "we care about the small people" following a deal to set up a $20bn compensation fund.

Mr Svanberg defended his mostly behind-the-scenes role, saying having two spokesmen would not have helped resolve the crisis.

The focus of the board is now on "rebuilding trust and safeguarding our licence to operate -- that is what this is all about", he said.

Source: CNN
www.cnn.com