BP posts higher profit thanks to strong oil business due to Iran war
British oil and gas group BP posted profits of $3.2 billion in the first quarter of 2026. This is more than double from the same quarter a year earlier and the highest amount since 2023.
Compared to the fourth quarter of 2025, underlying profit increased by $1.7 billion, from $1.5 billion to $3.2 billion (+113%). These results were mainly due to oil trading, which was boosted by the war in the Middle East. According to Reuters news agency, the rise in oil prices allowed major European oil companies to earn billions of dollars from the energy shortage. Profits were therefore above average analyst expectations, estimated at $2.5 billion.
In the quarterly report, BP breaks down its results into three segments. Profit in the Gas and Low Carbon Energy division came to $1.3 billion, up from $1.4 billion in Q4 2025. In the Oil Production and Operations segment, profits remained flat from the previous quarter, at $2.0 billion. In Customers & Products, profits rose from $1.3 billion in Q4 2025 to $3.2 billion in Q1 2026, an increase of 146 per cent.
Further, the figures show operating cash flow of $2.9 billion, down $4.7 billion from the previous quarter. Net debt rose to $25.3 billion at the end of the first quarter, compared with $22.2 billion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2025. According to BP, this was due to lower operating cash flow.
These results presented are the first since Meg O’Neill took office as the new CEO in early April. She has been tasked with leading the strategic shift back to oil and gas after a failed attempt to focus more on renewable energy.
In the Netherlands, BP is slowly disappearing from the scene after Catom, operator of OK service stations, acquired BP service stations last year.
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