BP Sells Key North Sea Pipeline

BP Plc has agreed to sell the Forties pipeline, one of the most important pieces of oil infrastructure in the US North Sea, to Ineos AG for $250 million. Ineos will make a cash payment of $125 million on completion and transfer a share of future earnings up to $125 million over seven years, BP said in a statement, Bloomberg reported. The London-based oil producer will retain rights to use the pipeline system’s capacity. The two companies confirmed last month they were in discussions for the pipeline, which transports crude used to set Dated Brent, the price benchmark for more than half the world’s oil. BP is selling assets to help pay for the 2010 oil spill in the US Gulf of Mexico, for which it set aside more than $50 billion. It also needs to bring down debt and maintain dividends as oil continues to trade at half its 2014 level.