SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form 6-K
Report of Foreign Issuer
Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16 of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
for the
period ended 27
April, 2020
BP p.l.c.
(Translation
of registrant's name into English)
1 ST JAMES'S SQUARE, LONDON, SW1Y 4PD, ENGLAND
(Address
of principal executive offices)
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant files or will file
annual
reports
under cover Form 20-F or Form 40-F.
Form
20-F |X| Form 40-F
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Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the
information
contained
in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to
the
Commission
pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act
of
1934.
Yes No
|X|
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press release
27 April 2020
BP confirms commitment to completing
sale of its Alaska business
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Continues to expect completion in mid-2020
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Total consideration remains $5.6 billion
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Financial terms adjusted to reflect market conditions
London:
BP today confirmed its commitment to completing the sale of its
Alaska business to Hilcorp, first announced in August 2019. Subject
to regulatory approvals, the parties expect to complete the
transaction in June 2020.
Reflecting
recent significant market volatility and oil price falls, BP and
Hilcorp have successfully renegotiated the financial terms of the
deal to respond to the current environment.
William
Lin, BP chief operating officer, Upstream regions said: "We have
worked closely with Hilcorp to reconfirm our commitment to
completing this deal. The agreed revisions respond to market
conditions while retaining the overall consideration. We look
forward to progressing swiftly to completion and for Hilcorp to
take over the operation of this important business. We are
confident that completion of this sale is the right thing for both
parties, for the business and for Alaska."
Under
the revised agreement, the total consideration for the sale remains
unchanged at $5.6 billion, subject to customary closing
adjustments. However, the structure of the consideration and
phasing of payments has been modified.
The
original agreement provided for Hilcorp to pay BP $4.0 billion
near-term and $1.6 billion through an earnout thereafter. Hilcorp
paid BP a $500 million deposit on signing of the transaction in
2019.
The
revised agreement adjusts the structure and phasing of the
remaining consideration to include lower completion payments in
2020, new cash flow sharing arrangements over the near-term,
interest-bearing vendor financing and, potentially, an increase in
the proportion of the consideration subject to earnout
arrangements.
The
revised agreement is expected to maintain the majority of the value
of the transaction. It is also structured with flexibility to phase
and manage payments to accommodate current and potential future
volatility in oil prices.
BP
and Hilcorp have developed detailed transition plans to deliver a
smooth handover of operations upon completion to allow Hilcorp to
focus on embedding planned operating efficiencies as rapidly as
possible.
This
transaction is part of BP's divestment programme to deliver $15
billion of announced divestments by mid-2021. Further information
relating to this transaction will be included in BP's first
quarter 2020 results scheduled for release on 28 April
2020.
Further information:
BP press office, London: bppress@bp.com,
+44 (0)7831 095541
Cautionary statement:
In
order to utilize the 'safe harbor' provisions of the United States
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the 'PSLRA'), BP
is providing the following cautionary statement. This press release
contains certain forward-looking statements - that is, statements
related to future, not past events and circumstances - which may
relate to one or more of the financial conditions, results of
operations and businesses of BP and certain of the plans and
objectives of BP with respect to these items. These statements are
generally, but not always, identified by the use of words such as
'will', 'expects', 'is expected to', 'aims', 'should', 'may',
'objective', 'is likely to', 'intends', 'believes', 'anticipates',
'plans', 'we see' or similar expressions. In particular, among
other statements, statements relating to BP's divestment programme
and plans including expectations with respect to completion of
transactions and the timing of receipt of proceeds of divestments
and other disposals. By their nature, forward-looking
statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to
events and depend on circumstances that will or may occur in the
future and are outside the control of BP. Actual results may
differ from those expressed in such statements, depending on a
variety of factors including the extent and duration of the impact
of the current market conditions including the significant drop in
the oil price, overall global economic and business conditions
impacting our business and demand for our products, as well as the
risk factors set forth in our most recent Annual Report and Form
20-F under "Risk factors" and in any of our more recent public
reports.
Our
most recent Annual Report and Form 20-F and other period filings
are available on our website at www.bp.com or can be obtained from
the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330 or on its website at
www.sec.gov
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf
by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
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BP
p.l.c.
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(Registrant)
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Dated: 27
April 2020
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/s/ Ben
J. S. Mathews
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Ben J.
S. Mathews
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Company
Secretary
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