BP presses on with IPO for pipeline assets

BP’s subsidiary BP Midstream Partners has filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) related to its proposed initial public offering (IPO) of common units representing limited partner interests.

According to BP’s announcement on Monday, BP Midstream Partners’ initial assets are expected to consist of ownership interests in one onshore crude oil pipeline system, one onshore refined products pipeline system, and one onshore diluent pipeline system, which carry shipments to or from  BP’s Whiting Refinery in Whiting Indiana, together with interests in four offshore crude oil pipeline systems and one offshore natural gas pipeline system that connect offshore production areas in the Gulf of Mexico with the Gulf Coast refining and distribution hubs.

The announcement comes after BP said in July it had begun evaluating the formation and IPO of a master limited partnership (MLP) to enhance shareholder value and to support BP’s strategy to grow its midstream business.

BP Midstream Partners expects the offering to occur in the fourth quarter of 2017, dependent on market conditions, and anticipates the common units will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “BPMP.”

BP Midstream Partners was formed as a vehicle to own, operate, develop and acquire pipelines and other midstream assets.  It will be headquartered in Houston, Texas, with offices in Chicago, Illinois.

If the IPO is completed, BP would own the general partner of BP Midstream Partners, all of its incentive distribution rights and a majority of its limited partner interests.

Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are acting as book-running managers and Citigroup is acting as structuring agent for the proposed offering.