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BP Ramps Up Oil & Gas Focus With the North Sea Murlach Field Startup

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Key Takeaways

  • BP brings the Murlach field online in the UK North Sea, its sixth major project of the year.
  • The field is expected to peak at 15,000 boe/d, supporting BP's ETAP hub in the central North Sea.
  • The Murlach startup underscores BP's renewed focus on traditional oil and gas production.

BP plc (BP - Free Report) , the British oil and gas giant, announced that its Murlach field, located in the UK North Sea, has been safely brought online. This marks the British energy giant’s sixth major upstream project of the year. The startup of this project represents a step forward toward its goal of bringing 10 major oil and gas projects online by year-end 2027.

The six projects that came online in 2025 are expected to add a combined net production of 150,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boe/d) at their peak. This is expected to help BP move closer to its goal of adding an incremental 250,000 boe/d of combined net production by 2027. The Murlach project is expected to have a net production of nearly 15,000 boe/d at its peak, contributing to the Eastern Trough Area Project ("ETAP"). ETAP is an oil and gas hub operated by BP in the Central North Sea that has been producing for the past 27 years.

Murlach: A Redeveloped Field

The Murlach project is a redevelopment of an older field that was active in the 2000s. The operator of the field relinquished the license, which was later acquired by BP. The company received government and regulatory approvals for the Murlach project in 2023. The redevelopment involves drilling two new wells and adding new subsea equipment to connect the wells to the main production system. Additionally, BP will repurpose some of the existing systems and make topside modifications to the ETAP central processing facility to bring the Murlach field back to production efficiently.

BP’s Renewed Focus on Oil and Gas

In recent years, BP has scaled back its renewables ambitions and renewed its focus on its traditional fossil fuels business. The startup of these new oil and gas projects demonstrates the British energy giant’s commitment to increasing production to meet the rising global energy demand while steadily enhancing shareholder returns. Apart from the Murlach project, BP intends to bring several other projects in Egypt, Trinidad and Tobago, and West Africa online in 2025. These initiatives demonstrate the company’s renewed focus on its oil and gas business to increase production and profits. 

BP’s Zacks Rank and Key Picks

BP currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks from the energy sector are Cheniere Energy Inc. (LNG - Free Report) , Oceaneering International (OII - Free Report) and Galp Energia SGPS SA (GLPEY - Free Report) . While Cheniere Energy sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, Oceaneering International and Galp Energia carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) each. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Cheniere Energy is involved in LNG-related businesses, which include LNG terminals and natural gas marketing. The company has achieved a milestone with the first production from the first LNG train of its Corpus Christi Stage 3 Liquefaction Project. The project, which includes seven midscale LNG trains, aims to expand the production capacity of the Corpus Christi Liquefaction facility. This expansion is expected to enhance Cheniere's position in the rapidly growing global LNG market, enabling it to meet the rising demand for LNG both in the United States and internationally.

Oceaneering International delivers integrated technology solutions across all stages of the offshore oilfield lifecycle. The company is a leading provider of offshore equipment and technology solutions to the energy industry. OII’s proven ability to deliver innovative, integrated solutions supports ongoing client retention and new business opportunities, ensuring steady revenue growth.

Galp Energia is a Portuguese energy company engaged in exploration and production activities. The company’s oil exploration efforts have yielded positive results, particularly with the Mopane discovery in the Orange Basin, offshore Namibia. After the initial exploration phase, Galp had estimated that the Mopane prospect could hold nearly 10 billion barrels of oil. This discovery allows Galp to diversify its global presence with the potential to become a significant oil producer in the region.

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