LONDON, July 24 (Reuters) - BP's head of refiningIain Conn is leaving the oil major and will be replaced by chiefoperating officer Tufan Erginbilgic, the company said onThursday.
The move is likely to fuel speculation that Conn, whosecareer at BP spanned 29 years, might replace the chief executiveof British utility Centrica, Sam Laidlaw.
Conn, 51, served on BP's board for the past 10 years and hasheaded the downstream division since 2007.
Erginbilgic will replace Conn on Oct. 1, BP said in astatement.
(Reporting by Ron Bousso; Editing by Dale Hudson)