BP announces bumper profits
- Bumper profits announced as the latest analysis reveals the typical annual energy bill could climb to an average of £2,070 from July in the hardest hit neighbourhoods across England
Energy giant, BP, has today posted profits of $3.2 billion for the first quarter of 2026, significantly higher than the previous quarter's results, $1.5 billion.
This is the first set of results reported by the company since the launch of the US-Israel war on Iran in February, which has seen the price of fossil fuels surging globally.
Reacting to the announcement, Mike Childs, head of science, policy and research at Friends of the Earth, said:
"Just as we saw in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, fossil fuel giants are quid's in when global instability drastically inflates fuel prices. But again, it’s ordinary people who pay the price when soaring energy prices threaten to plunge the UK into an even deeper cost of living crisis.
“If we’re to reduce our vulnerability to energy price shocks, the solution couldn’t be clearer. We must end our reliance on volatile, costly oil and gas by rapidly ramping up investment in cheap, clean, homegrown renewables alongside support for energy efficiency measures.
“Aside from trashing our planet, a future powered by fossil fuels is nothing more than a get-rich scheme for those who want to prolong our dependence in the interests of their greed, no matter the cost to the rest of us.”
Earlier this month, Friends of the Earth published new analysis which found that there are more than 6,500 neighbourhoods across England – including 4.7 million homes – that are set to be hardest hit by energy price spikes spiralling from the US-Israel war on Iran.
Using the latest projections from Cornwall Insights on the level at which energy prices will be capped by the government from July, Friends of the Earth can reveal that energy bills in these ‘energy crisis hotspots’ will rise to an average of £2,070 annually (ranging from £1,840 to £4,530), £227 above the typical national rate. This figure has been updated since the group first published its analysis.
ENDS
Notes for editors:
- More information about Friends of the Earth’s ‘energy crisis hotspots’ analysis can be found in our press release or by viewing an interactive map produced as part of the research.