20 Dec, 2025

BP CEO Shake-Up Reopens Talk of a Shell Megadeal

The appointment of Meg O’Neill as BP’s chief executive officer, replacing Murray Auchincloss, is a momentous milestone in the oil industry. When O’Neill takes over on April 1, 2026, she will become the first woman ever to lead a Big Oil company. But O’Neill’s arrival at BP could turn out to be even more momentous for the industry, as it could lead to the biggest merger deal in decades. Hours after BP announced that Auchincloss is stepping down effective immediately and O’Neill of Woodside Energy would become BP’s next CEO, analysts returned to speculating that the leadership shake-up could lead to a blockbuster merger deal involving the UK supermajor. Reuters energy columnist Ron Bousso and Forbes contributor Tim Treadgold speculate that the arrival of O’Neill could make a Shell-BP megadeal closer than ever before. O’Neill’s career history, the timing of the BP leadership change, and the UK supermajor’s struggles in recent years to please investors, including activist hedge fund Elliott, give credence to renewed market chatter that the company could move on to considering a merger with Shell. Related: $60 Oil Is No Longer a Floor In the previous period of intense speculation about a megadeal, Shell addressed the topic in June, following months of market chatter that BP, weaker than the other supermajors, could be a prime target of a takeover bid from Shell, or even the U.S. giants, ExxonMobil or Chevron. Under UK market rules, Shell confirmed on June 26 it has no intention of making an offer for BP, and by confirming this, Shell was bound by the restrictions in the rules not to make an offer for BP in the following six months. This period expires on December 26. A week before Boxing Day, BP this week announced the arrival of new CEO O’Neill, a U.S. citizen, who had spent 23 years in leadership roles at ExxonMobil before joining Woodside Energy in 2018. At Woodside, O’Neill was appointed CEO in 2021, and since then, she has grown Woodside Energy into the largest energy company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. O’Neill steered the merger of BHP’s petroleum business into Woodside in 2022. BHP’s former CEO from 2013 to 2019 was Sir Andrew Mackenzie, who is now chair of Shell. Prior to executive roles in BHP and another mining giant, Rio Tinto, Mackenzie spent 22 years with BP in senior and executive positions, mostly in exploration and production and petrochemicals, including as Chief Reservoir Engineer and Chief Technology Officer.