BP to Invest $9B in Deep-Water Platform

BP, with U.S. headquarters in Houston, approved plans to spend $9 billion on a new oil-production platform at its Mad Dog field in the Gulf of Mexico. Chevron and BHP Billiton, which own close to 40% of the Mad Dog project off the coast of Louisiana, will make a final decision on the investment in Q1 2017.

The second phase of the field takes place three years after the company delayed plans to assemble a $20 billion oil-production spar in the region. Instead, BP redesigned the project, and cut costs more than half. The fact that companies such as BP are coming back to such projects could be a sign that the two-year oil slump could be ending.

“Big deep-water projects can still be economic in a low price environment in the U.S. if they are designed in a smart and cost-effective way,” said Bob Dudley, BP’s chief executive, in a statement.

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