BP makes new oil discovery off US Gulf coast

BP made an oil discovery in the Far South field in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the UK-based oil major said on Monday. 

The exploration well was drilled in Green Canyon Block 584 about 120 miles off the coast of Louisiana. Both the initial well and a sidetrack encountered oil, and preliminary data indicates a potentially commercial volume of oil and gas, the company said in a press release.

The discovery comes after BP announced a radical strategy shift in February to turn around its underperformance, slashing planned investment in renewable energy in order to refocus on oil and gas production. 

The company said it plans to grow production in the Gulf of Mexico to 400,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) by 2030. Global production is expected to reach 2.3 million to 2.5 million boepd by the end of the decade. 

BP is the operator of Far South with a 57.5% interest, while partner Chevron holds a 42.5% stake. 

BP is planning more exploration in the ocean basin. It green-lit the development of the Kaskida oilfield, which lies in a complex geological structure called the Paleogene, and plans to go ahead with a second Paleogene development, Tiber, later this year, said CEO Murray Auchincloss during a conference last month.