BP puts UK oil, gas field assets up for sale

LONDON: BP said on Tuesday that it will seek to sell its holdings in a "number" of UK oil and gas fields, as part of an ongoing restructuring.

"BP announced today the intention of selling its interests in a number of operated oil and gas fields in the UK," it said in a statement.

"The assets involved are the Wytch Farm onshore oilfield in Dorset and all of BP's operated gas fields in the Southern North Sea, including associated pipeline infrastructure and the Dimlington terminal.

"BP anticipates that the staff currently working on these assets will transfer employment to the new buyer when the divestments are completed."

"These divestments will allow BP to focus resources and investment on its diverse central North Sea, northern North Sea, West of Shetland and Norway assets and on successful delivery of its new major projects."

BP remains on course to sell $30 billion of assets this year to help meet the cost of the devastating 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster.

However, a company spokesman said that Tuesday's sale was not triggered by the oil spill divestment programme -- but was part of a "longer term restructuring of the UK portfolio".

Last month, meanwhile, BP joined forces with Russia's Rosneft in what could be another transforming deal to explore for oil in the Arctic region.

The Gulf of Mexico oil disaster was triggered by a blast on the Deepwater Horizon rig -- leased by BP and operated by Transocean Energy -- that killed 11 workers last April.

The broken well was eventually plugged but not before it gushed about 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf waters.

Facing a massive compensation bill for the spill, BP has already managed to recoup around $20 billion by offloading interests in Argentina, North America, Egypt, Venezuela, Vietnam and Colombia.(AFP)