BP 2010 Annual Report Download - page 6

Information about this report
This document constitutes the Annual Report and Accounts in accordance
with UK requirements and the Annual Report on Form 20-F in accordance
with the US Securities Exchange Act of 1934, for BP p.l.c. for the year
ended 31 December 2010. A cross reference to Form 20-F requirements is
on page 2.
This document contains the Directors’ Report, including the
Business Review and Management Report, on pages 5-109 and 123-140,
142 and PC1. The Directors’ Remuneration Report is on pages 111-121. The
consolidated financial statements of the group are on pages 141-248 and
the corresponding reports of the auditor are on pages 143-145. The parent
company financial statements of BP p.l.c. and corresponding auditor’s
report are on pages PC1-PC16 and page PC2 respectively.
The statement of directors’ responsibilities in respect of the
consolidated financial statements, the independent auditor’s report on the
annual report and accounts to the members of BP p.l.c. and the parent
company financial statements of BP p.l.c. and corresponding auditor’s
report do not form part of BP’s Annual Report on Form 20-F as filed with
the SEC.
BP Annual Report and Form 20-F 2010 and BP Summary Review
2010 may be downloaded from www.bp.com/annualreport. No material
on the BP website, other than the items identified as BP Annual Report
and Form 20-F 2010 or BP Summary Review 2010, forms any part of
those documents.
BP p.l.c. is the parent company of the BP group of companies.
Unless otherwise stated, the text does not distinguish between
the activities and operations of the parent company and those of
its subsidiaries.
The term ‘shareholder’ in this report means, unless the context
otherwise requires, investors in the equity capital of BP p.l.c., both direct
and indirect. As BP shares, in the form of ADSs, are listed on the New York
Stock Exchange (NYSE), an Annual Report on Form 20-F is filed with the US
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Cautionary statement
BP Annual Report and Form 20-F 2010 contains certain forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the US Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 with respect to the financial condition, results of
operations and businesses of BP and certain of the plans and objectives of
BP with respect to these items.
In order to utilize the ‘Safe Harbor’ provisions of the United States
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, BP is providing the
following cautionary statement. This document contains certain forward-
looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of
operations and businesses of BP and certain of the plans and objectives of
BP with respect to these items. These statements may generally, but not
always, be identified by the use of words such as ‘will’, ‘expects’, ‘is
expected to’, ‘aims’, ‘should’, ‘may’, ‘objective’, ‘is likely to’, ‘intends’,
‘believes’, ‘plans’, ‘we see’ or similar expressions. In particular, among other
statements, (i) certain statements in the Business review (pages 6-82),
including under the heading ‘Outlook’, with regard to strategy, management
aims and objectives, future capital expenditure, the completion of planned
and announced divestments and disposals, acquisitions and other
transactions, future hydrocarbon production volume and the group’s ability
to satisfy its long-term sales commitments from future supplies available to
the group, date(s) or period(s) in which production is scheduled or expected
to come onstream or a project or action is scheduled or expected to begin
or be completed, capacity of planned plants or facilities and impact of
health, safety and environmental regulations; (ii) the statements in the
Business review (pages 6-63 and 68-81) with regard to anticipated energy
demand and consumption, global economic recovery, oil and gas prices,
global reserves, refining capacity, expected future energy mix and the
potential for cleaner and more efficient sources of energy, management
aims and objectives, strategy, production, petrochemical and refining
margins, anticipated investment in Alternative Energy, anticipated future
project developments, growth of the international businesses, Refining and
Marketing investments, reserves increases through technological
developments, with regard to planned investment or other projects, timing
and ability to complete announced transactions and future regulatory
actions; (iii) the statements in the Business review (pages 23-26, 63-67
and 73) with regard to the plans of the group, the cost of and provision for
future remediation programmes and environmental operating and capital
expenditures, taxation, liquidity and costs for providing pension and other
post-retirement benefits; and including under ‘Liquidity and capital
resources – Trend Information’, with regard to global economic recovery, oil
and gas prices, petrochemical and refining margins, production, demand for
petrochemicals, production and production growth, depreciation, underlying
average quarterly charge from Other businesses and corporate, costs,
foreign exchange and energy costs, capital expenditure, timing and
proceeds of divestments, balance of cash inflows and outflows, dividend
and optional scrip dividend, cash flows, shareholder distributions, gearing,
working capital, guarantees, expected payments under contractual and
commercial commitments and purchase obligations; and (iv) certain
statements in Chairman’s letter (pages 6-7) and Business review (pages 10-
11) in relation to an anticipated increase in the level of the dividend; are all
forward-looking in nature.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and
uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances
that will or may occur in the future and are outside the control of BP. Actual
results may differ materially from those expressed in such statements,
depending on a variety of factors, including the specific factors identified in
the discussions accompanying such forward-looking statements; the timing
of bringing new fields onstream; future levels of industry product supply,
demand and pricing; operational problems; general economic conditions;
political stability and economic growth in relevant areas of the world;
changes in laws and governmental regulations; actions by regulators;
exchange rate fluctuations; development and use of new technology; the
success or otherwise of partnering; the actions of competitors; natural
disasters and adverse weather conditions; changes in public expectations
and other changes to business conditions; wars and acts of terrorism or
sabotage; and other factors discussed elsewhere in this report including
under ‘Risk factors’ (pages 27-32). In addition to factors set forth elsewhere
in this report, those set out above are important factors, although not
exhaustive, that may cause actual results and developments to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements.
Statements regarding competitive position
Statements referring to BP’s competitive position are based on the
company’s belief and, in some cases, rely on a range of sources, including
investment analysts’ reports, independent market studies and BP’s internal
assessments of market share based on publicly available information about
the financial results and performance of market participants.
Unless otherwise indicated, information in this document reflects 100% of the assets and
operations of the company and its subsidiaries that were consolidated at the date or for
the periods indicated, including minority interests. The company was incorporated in 1909
in England and Wales and changed its name to BP p.l.c. in 2001. BP’s primary share listing
is the London Stock Exchange. Ordinary shares are also traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange
in Germany and, in the US, the company’s securities are traded in the form of ADSs.
(See page 134 for more details.)
The registered office of BP p.l.c., and our worldwide headquarters, is:
1 St James’s Square,
London SW1Y 4PD, UK.
Tel [phone].
Registered in England and Wales No. 102498. Stock exchange symbol ‘BP’.
Our agent in the US is BP America Inc.,
501 Westlake Park Boulevard, Houston, Texas 77079.
Tel [phone].
4 BP Annual Report and Form 20-F 2010