BP considering dividend payment deferral

BP is considering plans to defer payment of its next dividend to shareholders by placing the money in an escrow account until the full scale of the company’s liabilities from the Gulf of Mexico disaster can be determined, sources claim.

BP board members are discussing a plan that would see the expected £1.7bn second-quarter payout, due to be announced on July 27, delayed until the crisis can be brought under control, relieving some of the political pressure on the oil giant, formerly Britain's biggest company, the Times reports.

Further quarterly payments could also be treated in the same way until the company is on a firmer footing, it says.

"We are considering all options on the dividend. But no decision has been made," BP chief executive Tony Hayward said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal published today.