BP Profits Slump on More Oil Spill Charges
Updated from 3:40 a.m. EDT
NEW YORK (
) --
BP
(BP) - Get Report
said third-quarter earnings fell as it recorded additional charges related to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
BP said replacement cost profit, a key industry benchmark, was $1.85 billion in the quarter vs. a year-earlier profit of $4.98 billion. In the second quarter, the loss was $16.97 billion.
BP said on an underlying basis, after adjusting for non-operating items, third-quarter replacement cost profit was $5.5 billion, an increase of 18% from a year earlier.
Analysts expected replacement cost profit of about $4.5 billion.
Net profit fell 67% from a year earlier to $1.79 billion, BP said.
"These results demonstrate that BP is well on track for recovery after the tragic accident on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and subsequent oil spill," said CEO Bob Dudley, in a statement. "We have made good progress during the quarter."
BP said it took an additional pretax charge of $7.7 billion for the oil spill in the third quarter because of higher oil spill response costs. BP recorded a second-quarter charge of $32.2 billion.
BP's exploratory Macondo well blew out on April 20, and continued pouring out oil until July 15. BP sealed the well in mid-September.
-- Written by Joseph Woelfel
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