BP
BP is the third largest oil company in the world, and though based in England, is a multinational company with many international divisions. It was formerly known as British Petroleum, and is one of six vertically-integrated private-sector energy companies called "supermajors." It was first founded in 1908 to explore petroleum prospects in the Middle East.
Fast Facts
- Stock symbol: BP (NYSE, LSE, TSX)
- Annual revenue (2007): $291.4 billion
- Founder: William Knox D'Arcy
- Year established: 1954
- Began in 1908 as the as the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC)
- Industry: Fossil and alternative fuels
- Phone: 44-20-7496-4000
- Fax: 44-20-7496-4630
- HQ: London, England
- CEO: Tony Hayward
- CFO: Byron Elmer Grote
- Staff: 97,600
Key Dates
- May, 1901: William Knox D'Arcy is granted permission by the Shah of Iran to search for oil
- May, 1908: D'arcy finds the first commercially significant oil supply in the Middle East
- April 14, 1909: The Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC) is founded
- 1935: Name changed to the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC)
- 1979: During the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini seizes entirety of the company's assets, but it stays in business due to other international assets
- 1984-87: British government sells its holdings in the company
- December, 1998: Merges with Amoco, becoming BPAmoco
- 2000: Renamed BP, using tagline "Beyond Petroluem"
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