LONDON (Alliance News) - Oil giant BP PLC Tuesday said it plans to establish a separate business to manage its onshore oil and gas assets in the US Lower 48.
The new business will operate separately from the rest of BP and will be designed to adapt to the changing and competitive energy landscape in the region.
This move is expected to help unlock the significant value associated with BP's resource position in the US Lower 48 onshore, which the company now oversees through its Houston-based North America Gas group.
Over the last few years, BP has fundamentally reshaped its North America Gas portfolio, by divesting non-core assets and focusing development in leading US unconventional plays like the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas.
BP Upstream Chief Executive Lamar McKay said, "Now it's time to reshape the way we run the business - and we are very excited about this bold step forward."
BP will own the new US Lower 48 onshore business, but the business will be led by a separate management team and will be at a new location in Houston, apart from BP's Westlake campus.
It will have separate governance, processes and systems to address the unique competitive and operating environment in the US Lower 48 onshore. BP is expected to begin disclosing separate financials for the new business in 2015.
These changes are meant to improve competitiveness of the US Lower 48 onshore business through greater speed of innovation, faster decision-making and shorter cycle times from access to production, along with more efficient cost management.
BP.L slid 0.3% on Tuesday to settle at 491.50 pence.
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