BP eyes $40 oil price to break even

BP says it will need a crude price of about $40 a barrel in 2021 to cover spending and dividends, down from $60 this year, as chief executive Bob Dudley seeks to reassure investors on the oil major’s growth outlook and finances.

The breakeven level will fall as BP keeps capital spending at no more than $17bn (€16bn), it said. It aims to raise output by 5% a year to 2021 and is targeting returns of more than 10%.

Mr Dudley is seeking to return BP to growth after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill and the market downturn of the past three years shrank the scale of its operations. The CEO must also show investors he’ll keep spending in check as crude prices remain at half the levels of 2012 and 2013.