LONDON — BP killed speculation Tuesday that it was looking for a white-knight investor to take a large equity stake in the company by saying it won’t issue new equity to raise money to cover the costs of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
BP would welcome it if any existing shareholders or new investors wanted to expand their holdings in the company by buying already-listed shares, but no new shares will be listed, said a company spokeswoman.
A number of news reports during the weekend said BP was courting sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East, which could buy new shares to raise billions in capital.
BP’s shares have lost almost half their value since the Deepwater Horizon explosion that triggered the oil spill April 20. Libya’s top oil official, Shokri Ghanem, said Monday that BP is a bargain and recommended the nation’s sovereign wealth fund invest in the oil giant.
BP potentially faces tens of billions of dollars of liabilities relating to the continuing oil spill from its Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico.
