BP has revealed its profits more than doubled for the past three months amid pressure for stiffer windfall taxes for energy producers.
It came as BP confirmed it will be hit by the windfall tax on its UK operations this year, unlike rival company Shell.
The London-listed oil giant reported that underlying replacement cost profits – a measure preferred by BP – surged to £7.1 billion for the quarter to September, compared with £2.9bn in the same period last year.
It was significantly ahead of the £5.3bn predicted by market analysts.
Unite the union have hit out at BP’s profits as millions across the country feel the impact of the cost-of-living crisis.
The union’s general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Workers and communities face financial calamity this winter while energy giants like BP are making billions in unfettered profits.
“It’s time to stop tinkering at the edges. The Labour movement must seize the moment, take control of the debate and make the undeniable call to bring the energy giants into public ownership.”
Elsewhere, the Scottish Greens have said the profits underline the urgency of a windfall tax and a just transition to renewables.
Their energy and environment spokesperson Mark Ruskell (below) said: “The oil and gas giants may be raking in utterly obscene profits but the planet is suffering and so are millions of households across the UK and beyond.
“Companies like BP are paying lip service to renewables while taking us ever closer to environmental breakdown. They aren’t doing it along. They are being supported by a UK Government that is in the process of granting even more oil and gas exploration licences while the world burns.
“It is the worst kind of climate vandalism. We can’t go on like this. The more fossil fuels we burn now the greater the action that we will need to take if we are to have a sustainable future.”
According to an analysis by Channel 4, BP invested £300 million into “low carbon” technology in the first half of 2022, which is the equivalent of 2.5% of its profits for the same period.
Ruskell continued: “At heart this is a question of what kind of future and what kind of planet we want to leave behind. If we want it to be one where future generations can live and thrive then we need far reaching climate action and we need it now.
“We can’t drill our way out of this crisis. Even trying to is totally irresponsible and incompatible with our international obligations. All governments need to be working towards a future beyond oil and gas, not doubling down on it.
"One way that we can help to fund this is via a proper and meaningful windfall tax that can be reinvested in the green technology that is so badly needed."
BP said profits were weaker than the previous quarter following a dip in the average oil price.
In June, the cost of a barrel of Brent crude oil hovered at around 114 dollars per barrel, but since early July the measure has rarely risen above the 100-dollar line.
On Tuesday, a barrel of crude would set a buyer back around 94 dollars (£81).
Energy prices are, however, still at elevated levels following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and therefore set to weigh heavily on household budgets over winter.
BP confirmed that it will pay UK windfall taxes this year.
It told shareholders it will pay out £2.2 bn in taxes for its UK North Sea business in 2022, as well as £695 million of tax related to the energy profits levy.
The SNP echoed the Green’s calls for a as Alan Brown called on Jeremy Hunt to use his autumn statement to bring in a broader windfall tax.
He said: “Rather than tax those large companies who can afford it, the Westminster Tories are intent on imposing austerity 2.0 on ordinary people who are already struggling with the Tory cost-of-living crisis.
"Only independence offers Scotland an escape route from another round of Tory austerity.
“In his autumn statement, the Chancellor must bring in another windfall tax on all big companies that have made excessive profits on the back of the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis."
Brown called for a "balanced approach across all sectors" and for the companies making "huge profits" to "shoulder the burden that families face".
He continued: "This Westminster crisis has been a decade in the making, with a toxic combination of Tory cuts, Brexit and a failure to invest in renewable energy costing the economy billions, stagnating wages, decimating social security, and leaving the UK completely exposed. Scotland can take a different path with independence.”
Chief executive Bernard Looney said: “This quarter’s results reflect us continuing to perform while transforming.
“We remain focused on helping to solve the energy trilemma – secure, affordable and lower carbon energy.
“We are providing the oil and gas the world needs today – while at the same time investing to accelerate the energy transition.
“Our agreement on Archaea Energy is the most recent step in our strategic transformation of BP.”
