Trowbridge in Somerset, England, on March 15, 2025.
Anna Barclay | Getty Images News | Getty Images
BP CEO Murray Auchincloss on Tuesday leaned into the growth potential of the company’s recent oil and gas discoveries, as the struggling energy major contends with takeover questions and a major turnaround plan.
“Inside the upstream, we’ve had tremendous performance, along with record operating efficiency [and] along with starting up five new major projects,” BP’s Auchincloss told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe“, just after the release of the company’s second-quarter results.
He added that he was “very optimistic” about the company’s latest exploration discovery in the Bumerangue block in Brazil’s Santos Basin, just over 400 kilometers (248.5 miles) from Rio de Janeiro. BP is currently carrying out tests to further analyze the block’s potential.
The Bumerangue discovery, announced Monday, is the firm’s 10th since the start of the year and reflects a potentially significant boost as BP continues to double down on hydrocarbons.
After underperforming its peers in recent years, the firm has shifted gears by way of a fundamental strategic reset that will see BP prioritize fossil fuels and slash renewable spending.
Earlier on Tuesday, the energy major reported underlying replacement cost profit, used as a proxy for net profit, of $2.35 billion for the three months through June — comfortably beating analyst expectations of $1.81 billion, according to an LSEG-compiled consensus.
Ramping up investor returns, the company also said its quarterly dividend will increase to 8.32 cents from 8 cents and that it will maintain the pace of its share buyback program at $750 million for the second quarter.
Shares of the company were last seen trading 1.6% higher during morning deals.
Takeover speculation
The downturn of recent years has turned BP into the subject of intense takeover speculation, with some questioning a potential future merger with domestic rival Shell. For its part, Shell in late June said that it had “no intention” of making an offer.
UAE oil giant ADNOC, as well as U.S. oil giants Exxon Mobil and Chevron, are among some of the names that have also been touted as possible suitors.
Asked whether the company had been approached by any potential merger partners amid ongoing takeover speculation, Auchincloss said BP is focused on growth.
“That’s what is going to drive the share price up for shareholders,” he added.
CEO of BP Murray Auchincloss speaks during the CERAWeek oil summit in Houston, Texas, on March 19, 2024.
Mark Felix | AFP | Getty Images
Maurizio Carulli, global energy analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said BP’s earnings were the company’s first positive quarterly results “in a very long time,” noting that “what is perhaps most encouraging” was the firm’s outperformance came despite a period of lower oil prices.
“The management team has clearly started delivering on the strategy reset announced a few months ago. There has been huge speculation of late on the fate of BP and whether or not a rival will look to take them out with a merger,” Carulli said.
“If positive results like this continue to be delivered, that speculation may just end up being a blip in BP’s long and storied history,” he added.
Asset review
BP, which is under intense pressure to improve profitability from the likes of activist investor Elliott, noted that it would initiate a further cost review of its assets — mere weeks before Albert Manifold joins BP’s board from Sept. 1 and as chair from Oct. 1.
Asked for further details of this strategic review, Auchincloss told CNBC: “If you think back to 2020, we reduced our costs by 25%, and in 2024 we announced another program to reduce our costs by another 20%. That’s the $4-5 billion that I referenced earlier.”
“If we can achieve that, that will take us to around top quartile in the sector, but I don’t think that is enough,” Auchincloss said.
BP’s net debt came in at $26.04 billion at the end of the second quarter, down from nearly $27 billion compared to the first three months of the year.
“We need to keep driving safely to be the very best in the sector we can be. And that’s why we’re focused on another review to try to drive us toward best in class inside the sector,” Auchincloss added.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI attends the annual Allen and Co. Sun Valley Media and Technology Conference at the Sun Valley Resort in Sun Valley, Idaho, U.S., on July 8, 2025.
David A. Grogan | CNBC
OpenAI is in talks with investors about a potential stock sale at a valuation of roughly $500 billion, according to two sources with knowledge of the matter.
The talks are in early stages and would involve a secondary sale with shares sold by current and former employees, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions are confidential. Thrive Capital, an investor in OpenAI, could lead the potential round, the sources said.
Bloomberg was first to report on the latest talks.
OpenAI’s valuation has been on a continuous upswing since the artificial intelligence startup launched ChatGPT in late 2022 and quickly established itself as the leader in generative AI. The company announced a $40 billion funding round in March at a $300 billion, by far the largest amount ever raised by a private tech company.
Last week, OpenAI announced its most recent $8.3 billion tranche tied to that funding round.
OpenAI released two open-weight language models on Tuesday for the first time since it rolled out GPT-2 in 2019. The models aim to serve as lower-cost options that developers and researchers can easily run and customize, OpenAI said.
The company said earlier this week that ChatGPT was about to hit 700 million weekly active users.
OpenAI rival Anthropic, meanwhile, is in talks to secure between $3 billion and $5 billion in new funding led by Iconiq Capital at a potential $170 billion valuation, up from $61.5 billion in March.
CNBC previously reported that OpenAI’s annual recurring revenue is projected to top $20 billion by year-end, up from $10 billion in June.
Electric cars don’t have intakes and exhausts, so they can’t get hydrolocked in deep water the way ICE-powered cars can – but that doesn’t make them amphibious. Nobody told this Texan Chevy Bolt EUV owner that, and when they got caught on the wrong side of the floodwaters, they licked the stamp and sent it!
The recent catastrophic flooding in Texas has brought unimaginable tragedies and hardships to thousands of people who unquestionably deserve better, and living through something like that can lead people to make some rash decisions (I made it through the aftermaths of Hurricanes Andrew and Katrina, AMA). Rash decisions like pulling up to a tunnel flooded in nearly three feet of water, and deciding to stand on the gas.
Think I’m exaggerating? Watch this Chevy Bolt EUV go full “Boat Mode” as its driver decides that dealing with whatever unseen obstacle or deadly live wires concealed by the floodwaters are less annoying than having to find an alternative route for yourself.
Submerging an EV that wasn’t designed for it (or even a Cybertruck, which allegedly was), isn’t exactly advisable. In addition to the underwater threats, submerging the skateboard in water could damage sensitive electrical connectors, compromise battery seals, and cause shorts in circuit boards over time.
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“Even more critically, water ingress into high-voltage systems can pose serious safety risks, including electrical faults or, in rare cases, thermal events,” writes Jonathan Lopez, over at GM Authority. “Although the Bolt EUV in this instance completed its soggy journey successfully, long-term effects may still emerge.”
In other words: don’t try this at home.
Electrek’s Take
Chevy Bolt EUV, via GM.
Like, don’t try this at home … but it’s pretty awesome.
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Georgia BRIGHT, a statewide initiative to deliver affordable solar, kicked off its “No-Cost Solar Plan” in Atlanta yesterday, giving qualified homeowners a shot at roughly 400 fully prepaid rooftop-solar systems with zero upfront or maintenance costs. However, Georgia Bright’s No-Cost Solar Plan may lose its $156 million in grant money if the EPA steals back the Solar for All program’s entire $7 billion, which funded it.
On Earth Day (April 22) 2024, the Georgia BRIGHT Communities Coalition, including lead applicant Capital Good Fund, along with coalition member cities, Atlanta, Savannah, and Decatur, and dozens of other Georgia stakeholders, was allocated $156 million from Solar for All to bring solar to thousands of households statewide between now and mid-2029.
Families that earn 80% or less of their county’s Area Median Income can enter a drawing for the No-Cost Solar Plan now; a second drawing for another 400 systems is set for spring 2026.
“As the cost of living increases across our most vulnerable communities, this program will deliver significant savings to the households that need it most,” said Alicia Brown, director of Georgia BRIGHT.
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Those savings are already showing up. Pilot participant Christine Difeliciantonio saw her power bill plunge on her Columbus home from $224 in June 2024 to $50 in June 2025 after her panels came online, and she says the added resilience eases her mind during storms.
Nonprofits are benefiting, too. Trees Atlanta had 140 panels installed on their headquarters last November in the pilot program; the rooftop array went live in March and is on track to save about $3,000 a year, the carbon equivalent of planting 28,000 trees over 25 years.
What’s next for Georgia BRIGHT …
Georgia BRIGHT’s other programs in the works include its Residential Solar Savings Plan, offering custom rooftop installs with no upfront cost and guaranteeing households at least 20% savings on day one after factoring in the modest monthly payments. Georgia BRIGHT is also developing Community Benefit Solar, which lets businesses, houses of worship, and apartment buildings go solar so long as they share part of the financial benefits – think grocery gift cards, help with utility bills, discounted daycare, or rent relief – with eligible neighbors for five years. Finally, a Utility-Led Community Solar initiative will send grants to local utilities so they can run shared-solar programs designed specifically for low-income customers.
These programs really make a difference in a state like Georgia, which doesn’t offer any other solar incentives.
… if the EPA doesn’t steal its money
The New York Timesreported today that the Trump-led EPA is drafting letters to claw back the entire $7 billion Solar for All pot from 49 states, plus 11 nonprofit groups and Native American tribes. The grant money was awarded under President Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. According to the Times‘ sources, the EPA plans to send termination notices this week, effectively erasing solar savings for nearly a million low-income families before the panels ever land on their roofs.
Legal groups are already gearing up for the fight. “If leaders in the Trump administration move forward with this unlawful attempt to strip critical funding from communities across the United States, we will see them in court,” Kym Meyer of the Southern Environmental Law Center told the Times.
If the EPA pulls the trigger on this cruel, senseless plan to steal solar from lower-income communities, it wouldn’t just kneecap Georgia’s new program – it would pull the rug out from under low-income solar projects nationwide. The fight over Solar for All is officially on. How about that energy emergency that Trump declared, eh?
The 30% federal solar tax credit is ending this year. If you’ve ever considered going solar, now’s the time to act. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.
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