Sources say that BP has begun the process of selling stakes in Gulf of Mexico projects.

Four people familiar with the matter have confirmed that BP has begun a process of selling stakes in its Gulf of Mexico project. This would be Meg O'Neill's very first move as CEO. BP is one of the biggest operators in the Gulf 'Mexico. It has been weighing a possible sale of minority stakes to Tiber and Kaskida projects since a little over a year. Each project is estimated to be worth billions to the company. Four people who spoke on the condition of anonymity did not disclose the value of the stakes BP was looking to sell. BP refused to comment on the matter. Oil and gas companies often offer minorities in projects under development in order to release capital. BP refocused its strategy on oil and natural gas investments last year after receiving criticism from investors.

O'Neill is a Boulder, Colorado native and the first outside hire for the company in over a century. He took on the role of CEO in April. The Kaskida project and the Tiber project are 'BP's best prospects in Gulf of Mexico. Each is expected to have a production capacity of 80,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Kaskida will begin production in 2029, and Tiber will start in 2030. The?London listed company is becoming more reliant on U.S. growth. It wants to boost its U.S. Upstream production to 1 million barrels per day by 2030. This is just half of the?target to produce between 2.3 million and 2.5 millions boepd worldwide in this timeframe.

The oil prices have risen by over 40% this year as the U.S./Israeli war against Iran has disrupted supply worldwide.

(source: Reuters)