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BP has sold its US offshore wind power business, marking a shift back to its core oil and gas operations.
The move comes as renewables have not been profitable enough for BP, and amid pressure from the Trump administration, which has been critical of wind power.
This decision reflects BP's return to familiar territory after its unsuccessful attempt to transition to renewables.
BP, one of the oil and gas ‘supermajors’, has sold its onshore wind power business in the United States. It is also reopening its offices in Libya, going back to its core oil and gas business in what is seen as a step back by Big Oil on renewables.
According to a recent media report, BP has been prompted to take the step due to two reasons. One is the fact that renewables have not yielded enough profits for it.
Under former chief executive Bernard Looney, BP struck tried to transition from being a Big Oil supermajor to a big renewables player. But, as the report noted, it did not work and in less than five years, BP decided to return from renewables to what it knows best: oil and gas production.
The other factor is the pressure brought on by the Donald Trump administration ever since it took office.
The media report cited a recent report by Enverus which found that just 57 per cent of wind power projects in the United States would survive the One Big, Beautiful Bill. Meanwhile, just 30 per cent of solar capacity is resilient to the end of subsidies.
Donald Trump, a known climate change denier, is open about his aversion to wind power. He has suspended new turbine production soon after coming to office.
Recently, the Trump administration also announced a directive that requires all wind and solar energy facilities being constructed on federal land to undergo an “elevated review” by the Office of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, instead of lower-level agency staff.
Meanwhile, a new report from International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) found that renewables are cheaper than fossil fuels worldwide. Onshore wind projects remained the cheapest source of renewable electricity in 2024, followed by solar PV.
