British petroleum giant BP has launched efforts to divest partial ownership in two major Gulf of Mexico drilling ventures, according to four industry insiders familiar with the discussions.
The energy company has been considering selling minority interests in its Kaskida and Tiber operations for over a year, with industry analysts valuing each project in the billions of dollars for the corporation, as previously documented.
The sources, who requested anonymity due to the confidential nature of the negotiations, did not specify what percentage of ownership BP plans to divest.
When contacted for comment, BP representatives declined to respond to inquiries.
Energy corporations frequently sell partial stakes in developing projects as a strategy to recover invested capital.
Last year, BP restructured its business approach to concentrate on traditional oil and gas ventures, moving away from renewable energy initiatives following shareholder criticism and declining stock values.
The company’s new chief executive, O’Neill, who hails from Boulder, Colorado, represents the first external appointment to lead the organization in over 100 years. She assumed leadership in April.
Industry experts consider the Kaskida and Tiber ventures to be BP’s most promising Gulf of Mexico assets, with each facility projected to produce 80,000 barrels daily. Kaskida operations are scheduled to begin in 2029, followed by Tiber in 2030.
The London-based corporation is placing greater emphasis on American operations for future expansion. Company goals include boosting U.S. production to approximately 1 million barrels of oil equivalent daily by 2030, representing nearly half of its worldwide production target of 2.3 to 2.5 million barrels per day during that period.
Crude oil values have surged more than 40% this year due to supply disruptions caused by the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran affecting global markets.
