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BP to pay bonuses this year after a period of abstention to quell public anger over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill

Jeroen van der Veer, the former boss of Shell famously undermined the cause of high pay among business executives by saying he would work hard regardless of how much he received. Bob Dudley, the chief executive of arch-rival BP, begged to differ arguing that high salaries were needed and driving down pay could hit Britain as a financial and corporate centre.

However, for himself, Dudley said he works seven days a week and is too busy to think about his own pay packet: "I don't have time to think about this (executive pay)… or the time to spend it." So that has at least cleared up that perennial question about when on earth do these guys find the time to spend all this loot. They don't apparently.

The American national confirmed that BP planned to pay bonuses again this year after a short period of abstention in deference to public anger over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Even without these extras, Dudley got more than £1m for 2010 but then his predecessor, Tony Hayward, received four times that much for 2009. At least he has time to spend it now.

Solid results will improve confidence if, of course, BP can avoid prosecution over the Gulf oil spill

Bob Dudley has tried, over his short tenure as boss of BP, a few eye-catching – but ultimately unsuccessful – moves to attract the attention of investors and restore the company's still-sagging share price.

More workaday news such as Tuesday's bounceback to profitability and decision to raise the dividend 14% plus a series of positive statistics about how many wells are being drilled and the successful acreage secured, might be a better way of achieving his goal.

Dudley tried to tie up a glitzy partnership with Rosneft last year which came to grief because he had not counted on opposition from his old adversaries – I mean friends – at TNK-BP in Russia. Then a mega deal to raise more than $7bn (£4.4bn) through the sale of the BP stake in Pan American Energy to Argentina fell apart.

BP now seems resigned to a long slog of improving confidence through notching up steady milestones such as getting eight rigs working in the Gulf of Mexico – scene of a drilling moratorium following the Macondo well spill that did so much financial and reputational damage to the company in the spring of 2010.

But Dudley must still overcome what is perhaps the biggest hurdle of them all: the New Orleans court case with the Department of Justice that kicks off on 27 February.

Gross negligence charges against BP for the Deepwater Horizon accident have still not been ruled out although they seem somewhat unlikely on the evidence that has come out so far.

Former BP chief executive John Browne promised to go "beyond petroleum" and now Dudley must get "beyond prosecution" to really set the scene for the company's complete revival.

BP is on the right path, says chief executive Bob Dudley, as it revealed fourth quarter profit of $7.6bn on the back of higher oil prices

BP has declared itself "back on the right path" following the difficulties of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill with annual profits bouncing back from a $3.7bn (£2.3bn) loss to a $25.7bn profit.

A 14% increase in the dividend to eight cents per share for the final three months of 2011 was a clear signal of management confidence although net debt still lies at almost $30bn.

"BP is on the right path," said Bob Dudley, the chief executive who took over from Tony Hayward following the Deepwater Horizon accident.

"2012 will be a year of increasing investment and milestones as we build on the foundations laid last year. As we move through 2013 and 2014, we expect financial momentum will build as we complete payments into the Gulf of Mexico Trust Fund, restore high-value production and bring new projects on stream," he added.

The dividend hike was the first since the company resumed payouts last year and had been eagerly anticipated by the City.

It came as the oil group reported a fourth quarter profit of $7.6bn, boosted by higher oil prices. The group increased its oil and gas reserves by 103% over the last 12 months through new discoveries although this did not take account of any asset disposals.

BP said it had won "unparalleled" access to new exploration prospects in 2011 and is now increasing spending for the new financial year – from $19bn to $22bn.

"We believe this resulted in more new net acreage than accessed by any of our peers in 2011," said Dudley. "We now have a robust pipeline of opportunities with exploration prospects that will generate new resources and projects well into the next decade. We will see a continued ramp up of exploration over the next two to three years."

BP expects to drill 12 exploration wells in the coming year, twice the number during 2011, and will have eight drilling rigs operating in the US Gulf where an oil spill from the Macondo well in the spring of 2010 caused 11 deaths and devastated beaches.

The London-based energy group has already sold off $20bn worth of properties to raise money to pay for liabilities flowing from Macondo and intends to dispose of a further $18bn by the end of next year.

BP will face the beginning of a key legal trial in New Orleans into the spill later this month but Dudley said he was still hoping some out-of-court settlement could be arranged with the US department of justice.

"As I have said before, we are prepared to settle if we can do so on fair and reasonable terms, but equally, if this is not possible, we are preparing vigorously for trial."

Shares in BP rose 2p to 492p in early trading.

Iran has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz through which 20% of global oil supplies pass through. Which countries does Iran export to and how much of their crude oil supply does it make up?
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Iran has threatened to cut oil exports to the West and threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz through which one fifth of global oil supplies pass through - in bitter retaliation to the Iranian oil embargo agreed by the European Union.

The warning from Tehran comes after EU ministers agreed on Monday to stop any further oil contracts with the country with existing deals being allowed to run to July. The latest threats have added to an already tense relationship between the West and the Islamic Republic. Ian Traynor and Nick Hopkins have written:

Tehran threatened to respond by closing the strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil supplies pass, while a senior US official vowed that the west could use force to keep the route open.

The decision by EU foreign ministers in Brussels raised the stakes dramatically in the standoff between Iran and the west over Iran's nuclear programme.

The closing of the Strait would impact heavily on oil exports from not only Iran but also from Saudi Arabia - the largest exporter of crude oil in 2010. As the third-largest exporter of crude oil, Iran is also of major importance as would be the closure of the Strait of Hormuz which provided the route for 17 million barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2011 - totalling 20% of oil traded worldwide.

But where does Iran export its oil to? And how does Iran compare world-wide for oil reserves? The U.S Energy Information Administration (EIA) provide a thorough breakdown in their country analysis brief on Iran showing the top export destinations of Iranian oil, production and consumption over time and details on refinery capacity.

The top destination for Iran's crude oil exports in the six months between January and June 2011 was China, totalling 22% of Iran's crude oil exports. Japan and India also make up a big proportion, taking 14% and 13% respectively of the total exports of Iran. The European Union import 18% of Iran's total exports with Italy and Spain taking the largest amounts.

Sri Lanka and Turkey are the most dependent on Iran's crude exports with it accounting for 100% and 51% of total crude imported, respectively. South Africa also gain 25% of their total crude from Iran.

Saudi Arabia, as of 1 January 2011, is the country with the top proven oil reserves at 263 billion barrels followed by Venezuela and Canada. Iran has the fourth largest oil reserves in the world at 137b barrels beating Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Below are top export destinations for Iran's crude oil. Download the spreadsheet to find details of Iran's refining capacity and oil reserves by country.

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Iranian financial institutions would be ejected from global inter-banking system under US sanctions bill

Banking transactions with Iran and financing for its oil shipments could come under tougher scrutiny after a sanctions bill passed a key US Senate committee.

The bill, if it becomes law, would direct the White House to press the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (Swift) to shut out Iran's central bank and the country's other financial institutions from the system used to move money between banks across the world.

"It is inconsistent and troubling that financial communications services providers continue to service those financial institutions" in Iran that are otherwise subject to sanctions, said the provision passed on Thursday and proposed by the Democratic Senator Robert Menendez.

The measure would authorise the US treasury to sanction Belgium-based Swift and the financial institutions that own it, should it not drop Iranian banks. The final decision on sanctions would be left to the White House.

In a response posted on its website, Swift said it was transparent, complied with all sanctions laws and would "continue to do so".

Cutting Iranian banks out of Swift would have a "very disruptive impact" on the banks' ability to do business, said Jeanne Archibald, a partner with the Washington-based law firm Hogan Lovells. "Swift messages are kind of the glue for the worldwide banking system."

For the first time, the bill also extends the reach of sanctions to foreign subsidiaries of US companies. Under current sanctions laws, US firms cannot do business with Iran, but their foreign subsidiaries can and do. One provision in the new law would make US parent companies liable for business done by their foreign subsidiaries.

The bill could have a significant impact on trade of innocuous goods, because many foreign affiliates of US companies lawfully sell consumer products to Iran.

Before the measures could take effect, the bill would need to be passed by the full Senate, squared with existing legislation from the House of Representatives and signed by Barack Obama.

Iran's currency has fallen sharply in recent weeks because of US and western sanctions, many of which target its ability to sell oil.

A further section of the bill attempts to make it easier for families of US citizens killed in bomb attacks in 1983 in Beirut and in Saudi Arabia in 1996 to access frozen Iranian assets.

"We are one step farther down the road to justice," said Lynn Smith Derbyshire, whose brother Vincent, a US Marines captain, was killed at the age 30 in the Beirut bombing. "They destroyed our family," she told Reuters. "Honestly, I just don't want [the money] to go back to Iran."