Oil major BP to cut thousands of jobs in cost-saving drive

British oil major BP on Thursday said it plans to cut thousands of jobs as part of a major cost-cutting exercise.

“We have today told staff across bp that the proposed changes that have been announced to date are expected to impact on 4,700 bp roles – these account for much of this year’s expected reduction,” BP said in a statement.

“We have also reduced our contract number by 3,000,” the company said.

The measures, which were designed to cut costs, come after BP CEO Murray Auchincloss he said last year that the company intends to provide at least $2 billion in cash savings by the end of 2026.

BP’s workforce currently stands at around 87,800.

The company’s shares traded 1.4% higher on Thursday morning.

BP has underperformed its European rivals of late as participants in the energy market keep asking business investment case.

In a business update published On Tuesday, BP said weaker refinery margins and turnaround activity would take a $100 million to $300 million hit to its fourth-quarter profit, while further declines in oil production are expected.

The energy company is expected to announce quarterly and full-year results on February 11.

BP said in the same update that it had postponed an investor event next month so its chief executive can fully recover from a “planned medical procedure”. Auchincloss said he is “recovering well” from the procedure, which was not previously disclosed.

The capital markets event, which was previously scheduled to take place in New York on February 11, will now take place in London on February 26.

— CNBC’s Ruxandra Iordache contributed to this report.