Overview

• Shell has formally denied media reports of takeover negotiations and invoked the UK Takeover Code, preventing any bid for BP for at least six months.
• UK Competition and Markets Authority and European Union regulators are expected to present significant antitrust hurdles that industry experts say make a merger unlikely.
• BP’s share price has lagged behind peers following strategic pivots and a first-quarter profit shortfall, leaving the company under renewed pressure from activist investors.
• Shell has focused on cost reductions and returned £2.5 billion to shareholders through a recent buyback, with CEO Wael Sawan emphasizing share repurchases over acquisitions.
• A combined Shell-BP entity would reach an estimated £211 billion market value, but analysts question whether the potential scale would deliver net benefits given the firms’ contrasting strategies.