Shell mergers head left after bid for BP blocked - FT

(Sharecast News) - Shell chief executive Wael Sawan and his finance chief quashed an internal proposal to buy rival BP this year, after which the company's head of mergers and acquisitions left the business, the Financial Times reported citing unnamed sources. The M&A team, led by Greg Gut, argued in the early part of 2025 that BP's plunging share price and management turmoil presented an opportunity for Shell to solve its growth challenges and pushed for a deal.

While Sir Andrew Mackenzie, Shell's chair, was said to be interested in Gut's pitch, according to two people familiar with the matter, Sawan and chief financial officer Sinead Gorman felt that the challenge of combining two of Britain's biggest companies would derail their strategy.

Sawan's opposition suggests that Shell was unlikely to pursue a deal for BP when restrictions lift on its ability to bid on December 26, said a person familiar with the situation.

In June, Shell responded to press reports by saying it was not interested in a deal for BP and that no talks had taken place between the two companies. This meant it was unable to make an offer for its rival for six months, under UK takeover rules.

By the time of the no-bid statement Gut had already left Shell, with his failure to win over Sawan and Gorman ultimately paving the way for his exit, according to people familiar with the matter.

"There was a moment to buy BP, when the chair had left and the chief executive was wobbly, [but] that moment has passed," the paper quoted one oil and gas investor briefed on the situation as saying.

After the possible deal was pitched, Sawan in May decided he would rather focus on improving shareholder returns than a bid for a rival then valued at about £56bn.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com