BP Agrees $680 Million ARCO Aluminum Sale

By REUTERS

Published: April 4, 2011 at 3:30 AM ET

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LONDON (Reuters) - BP Plc said on Monday it had agreed to sell ARCO Aluminium, a supplier of rolled aluminium sheet used mainly in the production of beverage cans, to a consortium of Japanese companies for $680 million (421 million pounds) in cash.

The consortium, which comprises Sumitomo Light Metal Industries (40 percent), Furukawa Sky Aluminium (35 percent), Sumitomo Corporation (20 percent), Itochu Corporation (2 percent) and Itochu Metals Corporation (3 percent), expects to complete the deal in the third quarter of 2011, BP said.

"Although a strong business, ARCO Aluminium is clearly a non-strategic asset for BP. Today's agreement will deliver an attractive price for the business, unlocking its value for our shareholders," said BP Chief Executive Bob Dudley.

BP is hoping to raise $30 billion from disposals by the end of 2011 to help pay for the worst-ever offshore U.S. oil spill last year, the bill for which is estimated to be around $41 billion. It has already agreed deals worth a total of over $24 billion.

(Reporting by Matt Scuffham; Editing by Neil Maidment)