BP's appetite for exploration helps the driller post healthy profits and production figures

Adventures in exploring for fresh sources of oil have helped BP deliver its strongest set of results in years — with production hitting its highest level since 2010.

Fourth-quarter profits at the oil giant more than quadrupled as prices surged and the firm’s new production came on stream.

Underlying profits for 2017 leapt to $6.2 billion (£4.4 billion) compared with $2.6 billion in 2016.

Production increased by 12% to 3.6 million barrels a day and operating cashflow for the year, excluding Gulf of Mexico oil spill payments, was up 40% at $24.1 billion. Chief executive Bob Dudley said: “We had our most successful year in exploration since 2004. We had our best reserve replacement ratio in over a decade. It has been one of our best years in history [in downstream].”

Referring to tumbling global share prices, Dudley said: “We will keep advancing through any rough waters the markets send us.”

BP, like rival oil giant Shell, is raking in the cash as oil prices soared recently to a three-year high of $70 a barrel, up from an average of $54 a barrel in 2017.

A long-period of cost-cutting in the oil sector has focused the business and BP is also reaping the benefit of delivering seven new projects during 2017, which have boosted its production significantly.

BP said its average cost per barrel had fallen from $60 to $53.

Fruitful adventures in Egypt, Senegal, Trinidad and the North Sea gave BP its strongest year in exploration since 2004.

However, BP’s results continue to be overshadowed by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010 with $5.2bn of payments during the year.

Compensation claims over the Deepwater Horizon spilll could take 15 to 18 years to clear.