Aker BP raises dividend despite 2026 output dip (updated)

Aker BP ASA

11/02/2026 05:25

Adds analyst, capex, outlook in paragraphs 6-12

Boosts quarterly dividend by 5%

Q4 EBITDA down 24% to $2.07 bln vs forecast $2.14 bln

Output set to decline in 2026, before a rebound

By Nerijus Adomaitis

OSLO, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Norwegian oil firm Aker BP AKRBP.OL said on Wednesday it would raise its quarterly dividend by 5% for 2026 despite forecasting a drop in output, after reporting a bigger-than-expected fall in fourth-quarter profit on lower energy prices.

The group's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped 24% to $2.07 billion for October-December, below the $2.14 billion expected in a company-compiled analyst poll.

Aker BP’s output is expected to fall this year to 370,000–400,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed), from 420,000 boed in 2025, though ongoing projects such as the large Yggdrasil development in the North Sea are expected to reverse the decline.

"Our major development projects also made solid progress... Taken together, these developments strengthen the foundation for sustaining production above 500,000 barrels per day into the 2030s and reinforce our long-term outlook," CEO Karl Johnny Hersvik said in a statement.

The company, partly owned by BP BP.L, said it will raise its quarterly dividend this year by 5% to $0.6615 per share, or $2.65 annually, in line with its previous guidance.

The expected output decline comes as production at Norway’s largest oilfield, Johan Sverdrup, where Aker BP holds a 31.57% stake, is set to fall by more than 10% this year. Sverdrup accounted for more than half of Aker BP’s net production last year.

Analysts at DNB Carnegie said Aker BP’s 2026 guidance points to a smaller-than-feared production decline, offering some relief to investors, but flagged rising per-barrel costs on lower output and higher capex on projects such as Valhall PWP-Fenris, where costs have climbed to $7 billion from $5.9 billion.

Aker BP plans to drill 12 exploration wells in 2026, all in the North Sea, compared with about 16 wells last year.

(Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis, editing by Terje Solsvik and Rashmi Aich)

((nerijus.adomaitis@thomsonreuters.com; +47 9027 6699; Reuters Messaging: nerijus.adomaitis.thomsonreuters@reuters.net/))