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Is BP Dealing Away Its Future?

By , Global Energy Strategist, Oil & Energy Investor • @KentMoors_OEI -

In the aftermath of the biggest environmental disaster in U.S. history, the Gulf of Mexico relief-well saga continues to monopolize our attention.

But here's the reality: Money problems - not the relief wells - could prove to be the undoing of BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP). And that means the company's fate is most closely tied to its ongoing efforts to raise money by selling key assets from around the world.

BP is looking to divest $30 billion in assets during the next 18 months.Selling its assets is one way for the company to raise the money needed to cover its expected liabilities. But here's the problem: Those sales are moving right into the teeth of a new round of mergers-and-acquisitions (M&A) deals that were already taking place in the oil-and-gas sector, due to rising volatility there and the inability of some to withstand the uncertainty.

As a result of all this wheeling and dealing, the big will get bigger - and BP will get smaller. Indeed, the BP that emerges from the mess that it created should be smaller, leaner and smarter. But will that be good enough?

To understand BP's financial strategy, please read on...

Gasoline-Price Forecasting: What Sam the Gas Station Owner Knows That We Don't

By , Global Energy Strategist, Oil & Energy Investor • @KentMoors_OEI -

What started out as a routine fill-up at the service station that I frequent has turned into a solid gasoline-price-forecasting model that should spotlight the most-imminent profit opportunities.

Of course, it wouldn't have happened without Sam.

Sam runs a gasoline station 12 miles from my house, in a little, out-of-the-way, suburban town. We have formed a friendship, of sorts, through the years. He's one of the few people I run into on a regular basis who does not ask me where gasoline prices are headed.

He already knows.

To find out how Sam's pricing prescience can mean profits for you, please read on...

Money Morning Mailbag: BP Stuck in Oil Spill Spotlight While Others Downplay Disasters

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

The BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) oil spill disaster has shone a spotlight on oil industry pollution. While BP takes the brunt of public anger, no oil company has escaped the wrath of critics who are eager to expose an industry they feel shortcuts safety standards for profit.

Comments from readers with first-hand industry experience continue to pour into Money Morning's Mailbag, sharing their thoughts on the oil industry's operations.

Read More…

Question of the Week: Readers Respond to Money Morning's BP Image Query

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) last week confirmed that Robert Dudley - an American and a company insider - would be replace Tony Hayward as the company's chief executive officer in a move that's intended to improve the battered BP image.

Dudley, who takes over Oct. 1, will have to take on a double-edged challenge. He has to continue the cleanup effort that he's headed since June. And he must persuade the U.S. government that BP should be allowed to continue offshore drilling work in the Gulf of Mexico - the region it has targeted for 25 of its 40 future production operations over the next five years.

Because he's led the BP oil-spill-response efforts since June, Dudley has developed a much closer rapport with U.S. officials than his predecessor. Make no mistake: The respect he commands was a key reason for BP's swap at the top.

Read More…

BP's Offshore Plans Spark Talk of Drilling Ban Among Concerned European Nations

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

BP PLC's (NYSE ADR: BP) plans to drill for oil and gas off the coast of Libya within weeks has caused nearby European countries like Italy to sound the alarm for a drilling ban until they ensure the safety of surrounding waters.

Italy's Environment Minister Stefania Prestigiacomo was the first European Union official to suggest a drilling ban to give nations around the Mediterranean Sea time to coordinate a drilling policy.

"A moratorium could be a right approach for potentially dangerous drilling...to give Europe time to define a new and specific strategy for the Mediterranean especially in light of the risk exposed by the Deepwater Horizon spill," Prestigiacomo wrote to the Financial Times.

BP has a rig in Libya's Gulf of Sirte, about 500 kilometers from Italian and Maltese territory. The first of five planned wells will be about 200 meters deeper than the Macondo well that spewed as much as 184 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico for almost three months.

Read More…

Special Report: New CEO Dudley Isn't the Long-Term Answer at BP, Expert Says

By , Executive Editor, Money Morning • @privatebrief -

When readers ask me how Dr. Kent Moors could be up nearly 60% on a portfolio that he only launched July 6, I don't give them an answer.

I tell them a story.

When the BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) CEO-replacement saga began to unfold earlier this week, and the Money Morning news team was working the story, I contacted Dr. Moors to ask him if he knew anything about anointed successor Robert Dudley.

With that response, Dr. Moors underscored, yet again, why he's the ultimate energy-sector insider: He doesn't just know about Dudley - he actually knows him.

In fact, Dr. Moors went on to give me an analysis of the new CEO's managerial style, including Dudley's strengths and weaknesses. Dr. Moors even went as far as highlighting the elements of Dudley's managerial proclivities - and the elements of BP's strategy - that pose the biggest risks to the Big Oil company's turnaround.

For the full story on BP’s new CEO, please read on...

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Money Morning Mailbag: U.S. Drilling Ban Could Be Permanent for BP

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

The U.S. government's deepwater oil drilling ban, which resulted from the BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) Gulf oil spill, prompted some readers to question how far U.S. authority reaches regarding offshore business, and what kind of international repercussions could result.

Q: Where do international waters begin for the Gulf of Mexico? I read somewhere if we didn't drill for oil in the Gulf that China was going to do so. When you are talking international business, does U.S. President Barack Obama have the authority to shut it all down?

- John M.

Read More…

The End of the Cap-and-Trade Masquerade Opens New Doors For Investors

By , Global Investing Specialist, Money Morning -

When U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-NV, last week disclosed that the so-called "cap-and-trade' energy proposal that passed the U.S. House of Representatives last year would not be taken up by the Senate, climate-bill proponents were deeply dismayed.

Indeed, Financial Times columnist Clive Crook even said that the United States "has let the world down on climate."

But here's the irony. With the Senate's refusal, we may just have moved a step closer to a climate change policy that will actually work. And that's good news for U.S. taxpayers. And it opens new doors for U.S. investors.

To see the sectors that will benefit from the likely direction of climate reform, please read on...

We Want to Hear From You: Will BP's Makeover Restore the Oil Giant's Image?

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) confirmed Tuesday that embattled Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward is being replaced by Robert Dudley - an American and a company insider - in a move that's intended to improve the oil giant's battered image.

Dudley, who takes over Oct. 1, will have to take on a double-edged challenge. He has to continue the cleanup effort that he's headed since June. And he must also persuade the U.S. government that BP should be allowed to continue offshore drilling work in the Gulf of Mexico - the region it has targeted for 25 of its 40 future production operations over the next five years.
 
Because he's led the BP oil-spill-response efforts since June, Dudley has developed a much closer rapport with U.S. officials than his predecessor. Make no mistake: The respect he commands was a key reason for BP's swap at the top.

Read More…

BP Hopes for a CEO Savior in American Robert Dudley

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) plans to oust Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward from the top spot and to appoint Robert Dudley - an American and an insider - in an attempt to regain U.S. trust after a highly criticized, ineffective response to the Gulf oil spill.

BP is expected to announce the change today (Tuesday) when it releases its second-quarter financial report and Hayward addresses shareholders. The official appointment would be effective Oct. 1 - following a transition period that would give BP time to permanently seal the massive oil leak and to clean up most of the five million barrels of oil that have polluted the Gulf region as a result of the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.

Read More…

Money Morning Mailbag: Relief Wells Near Finish, But Oil Spill Blame Game Continues

By , Associate Editor, Money Morning -

While BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) closed in this week on finishing relief wells to permanently plug the oil spill, stormy weather threatened to delay the final steps as clean up crews were called in to shore.

BP capped the blown-out Macondo well last week and has been conducting pressure tests to ensure the cap's strength. A relief well is close to completion but work has been halted until the storm passes. All work could be stopped for 10 - 14 days if the area is evacuated.

While the leak may finally be close to plugged, the financial aftermath is far from over. Corporate entities and the U.S. government continue to point fingers at each other.

Read More…

Breaking Down the British Giant: Who Will Buy BP's Best Assets?

By , Managing Editor, Money Morning -

There's no question that some of BP PLC (NYSE ARD: BP)'s assets are on the block.

The company said Monday that the total cost of the Gulf oil spill had already risen to $3.5 billion. And while it's too early to estimate the final costs associated with the spill, analysts have pegged the tab at $20 billion to $40 billion. Some even believe the total cost could come in near $100 billion.

BP has already paid $165 million to settle individual claims and agreed to set up a $20 billion escrow fund to absorb further damages. It's also suspended its dividend to conserve cash.

But that's not enough. With costs soaring, BP said in June that it is looking to raise at least $10 billion through asset sales in the next 12 months. With that the run on BP's assets commenced.

Read More…

The BP Relief Wells … And the Two Nightmare Scenarios to Fear

By , Global Energy Strategist, Oil & Energy Investor • @KentMoors_OEI -

Although the global energy sector is entering its most-promising stretch in decades - with more new technologies and more investment opportunities than ever before - I just can't seem to get away from BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) and its problems.

Take last Thursday, for instance. I began the day at FOX Business News, where the interviewer wanted me to explain what will happen if the BP relief wells fail. Then I spent an hour as the guest on a radio talk show from Johannesburg, South Africa, detailing what options are available to BP. Later still, I served as a consultant to a Wall Street investment crew - via conference call - once again on the status of the BP relief wells.

The BP relief wells are right now the dominant topic on everyone's mind. But there are two potential scenarios - of "nightmare proportions" - that investors need to know about.

Let me explain...

To understand the possible nightmares that BP faces in the months to come, please read on...

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