BP has announced plans for swingeing job cuts which will likely cause deep alarm in its North Sea business.

The company said it plans to shed around 10,000 jobs globally as it grapples with the fall in oil and gas prices caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The cuts will result in a reduction of around 15 per cent in total employee numbers at BP.

The company said the majority of roles affected will be office-based, rather than front-line operational posts.

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It did not give any indication of how the cuts will impact on its North Sea business, which is run from Aberdeen.

BP employs around 1,150 people in its North Sea business. A 15% reduction in staff numbers would result in about 170 jobs being cut.

It is thought BP could axe around 2,000 jobs in total in the UK. It has big offices in London and Sunbury.

News of the cuts comes amid uncertainty about BP’s plans for the North Sea as the company’s new chief executive Bernard Looney prepares to make big changes at the group.

In February he announced that BP aims to become a net-zero business by 2050 in terms of carbon emissions. This will involve BP reducing its reliance on oil and gas and increasing investment in areas such as renewable energy.

Trade body Oil & Gas UK said BP's job cut plans underlined the need to continue working with governments to deliver an inclusive, fair, and sustainable transition to a lower carbon future.

"This is the best way to protect jobs, create new business opportunities and ensure energy regions from the north east of Scotland to the east of England are not left in the dark," said Oil & Gas UK's chief executive Deirdre Michie.

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BP retrenched in the North Sea amid the downturn triggered by the last crude price plunge, from summer 2014 to early 2016. The company sold assets it decided were non-core and shed hundreds of jobs.

It is focusing investment on a narrower range of fields than in the past, including big new developments West of Shetland.

A new boss will take charge of the North Sea business in July, when Glasgow-born Emeka Emembolu is due to succeed Ariel Flores.

READ MORE: Glasgow-born oil executive to take charge of BP's North Sea business

In an email to staff yesterday Mr Looney noted that BP had announced a three-month redundancy freeze in March to ease some of the immediate worry for people concerning the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. This has resulted in demand for oil and gas slumping.

Mr Looney said yesterday: “The oil price has plunged well below the level we need to turn a profit.”

Mr Looney said BP will now begin a process that will see close to 10,000 people leave the company.

He noted that the most senior levels of BP will bear the biggest impacts of his reform drive.