Wind farms and 35 Glastonburys: How else could you spend BP’s £2.4 billion quarterly profit?

The Iran conflict – which has already caused thousands of deaths and triggered severe global economic disruption – shows little sign of ending soon. But someone is benefiting: BP and other fossil fuel giants.

BP’s profits more than doubled in the first quarter of 2025 to $3.2bn (£2.4bn), driven by a surge in oil prices since the outbreak of the conflict.

The Strait of Hormuz – which carries around 20% of global oil and gas supplies – has been effectively closed since Trump initiated the conflict, sending Brent crude swinging between $73 and nearly $120 a barrel.

That volatility has been a windfall for the energy giant, which described its latest results as “exceptional.”

Environmental campaigners have compared the figures to the huge profits oil companies made after Russia invaded Ukraine.

“Just as we saw in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, fossil fuel giants are quids-in when global instability drastically inflates fuel prices,” said Mike Childs, head of science, policy and research at Friends of the Earth. “But again, it’s ordinary people who pay the price when soaring energy prices threaten to plunge the UK into an even deeper cost of living crisis.”

So what else could you do with £2.4bn?

Pay off almost half the UK’s energy debt

Around two million UK households are currently in debt to their energy suppliers, according to Energy UK, owing a staggering £5.5bn – a figure that has doubled over the past three years.

Arrears now account for around 75% of all unpaid bills, meaning most of the debt sits without a repayment plan in place.

“Energy debt has risen for one simple reason: energy bills have remained far higher than household incomes can sustain,” a spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition said earlier this year. “This is not a story of widespread ‘won’t pay’ behaviour – it is overwhelmingly about people who simply cannot afford the bills landing on their doormats.”

Clear half the Great Pacific Garbage Patch

The floating vortex of marine debris in the north of the Pacific Ocean – three times the size of France and containing 1.8 trillion plastic pieces – remains one of the defining images of the ecological crisis.

Cleaning it up is projected to cost around $7.5bn (£5.5bn) over a decade. BP’s windfall would fund a little under half the effort.

As renewable capacity surges, oil companies are increasingly turning to petrochemical projects to protect their margins – a key driver of plastic production.

Read more:

• Why are BP profits so high in the cost of living crisis? We asked experts
• Fossil fuel giant BP accused of ‘profiting off misery’ after announcing staggering earnings
• ‘Make them pay their fair share’: BP’s record £23bn profit sparks calls for proper windfall tax

Double the UK’s offshore wind budget

Energy secretary Ed Miliband set aside £1.1bn a year for offshore wind developers investing in new projects. BP’s quarterly profit alone could double that annual budget.

The Institute for Public Policy Research think tank has argued that renewables are the only lasting fix for energy price shocks: “Wars can’t raise the price of wind.”

“The transition to net zero is the only way to protect the UK from a never-ending wave of international conflict driving up energy prices,” said Pranesh Narayanan, senior research fellow at IPPR.

Renewables generated roughly half the UK’s electricity in 2025, with wind accounting for 30% of supply for the first time.

Cover the UK’s entire annual flood bill

Flooding costs the UK an estimated £2.2bn in damages and management costs every year. By 2050, that figure is expected to rise to £3.6bn annually as the climate crisis worsens. Around eight million homes are projected to be at flood risk by the middle of the 21st century, up from six million today.

BP made more in a single quarter than it costs to deal with all annual flood damage across the country.

Put on 35 Glastonburys

The titan of the British festival scene, Glastonbury Festival costs around £60million to stage.

This year is a fallow year, meaning there is no festival. But with BP’s profits, it could return next year on an entirely different scale – funding a festival 35 times the size.

Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more. 

Change a vendor’s life.

Buy from your local Big Issue vendor every week – and always take the magazine. It’s how vendors earn with dignity and move forward.

You can also support online:
Subscribe to the magazine or support our work with a monthly gift. Your support helps vendors earn, learn and thrive while strengthening our frontline services.

Thank you for standing with Big Issue vendors.