British energy giant BP announced Thursday that it would slash 4,700 staff jobs, or 5% of its workforce, and cut thousands of contractor roles to reduce costs.
The move is part of a "multi-year program to simplify" the group and improve performance, BP said in a statement.
This comes as BP chief executive Murray Auchincloss has emphasized oil and gas to boost profits, scaling back on the group's key climate targets since taking the helm one year ago.
"We have got more we need to do through this year, next year and beyond, but we are making strong progress as we position BP to grow as a simpler, more focused, higher-value company," he said in an email sent to employees and seen by Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Speaking about the job cuts, which include more than 3,000 contractor roles, he added: "I understand and recognize the uncertainty this brings for everyone whose job may be at risk and also the effect it can have on colleagues and teams."
BP, which has around 90,000 permanent staff based around the globe, indicated that more job reductions were on the horizon.
"We expect around 4,700 roles to be impacted ... accounting for much of the anticipated reduction in our headcount this year," the company said.
"We are also reducing our contractor numbers by more than 3,000 – with 2,600" positions having already ended.
This follows an announcement last month that the British group will "significantly reduce" investment in renewable energy through 2030.
That echoed an announcement by rival Shell that it will no longer develop new offshore wind projects.
BP and Shell recently reported falls in their third-quarter profits and will announce their annual results in the coming weeks.
