BP Plc may become the next oil giant to power operations with clean energy. The London-based company is in talks with a solar developer it partially owns, Lightsource BP, to buy power in the U.S., according to executives at the renewable company. A contract may be signed within six months, Lightsource BP CCO Katherine Ryzhaya said. “It’s a no brainer for them to play in solar,” Ryzhaya said in an interview Tuesday at Infocast’s Solar Power Finance & Investment Summit in San Diego. “They’re doing it for financial reasons.” BP didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. In 2017, the oil giant said it would invest $200 million in Lightsource BP over three years for a 43% stake. Oil majors are turning to wind and solar to run their operations as clean energy becomes cheap enough to compete with fossil fuels. Exxon Mobil Corp. last year agreed to contracts to buy 500 megawatts of solar and wind power in in the Permian Basin, the fastest growing U.S. oilfield. More recently, Petroleum Development Oman said it signed a deal to buy solar on the Arabian peninsula. “It was only a matter of time before the oil companies started signing deals,” BloombergNEF analyst Kyle Harrison said in an email. Buying solar power could help BP achieve its goal of growing without increasing its carbon footprint. Earlier this year, the company agreed to better disclose how its business aligns with the Paris climate accord after coming under pressure from shareholders.

According to the office of National Statistic it is estimated that employment rates for both men and women have been generally increasing since early 2012. For November 2018 to January 2019, the employment rate: for all people was estimated at 76.1%, the highest since comparable records began in 1971 for men was estimated at 80.5%; it has not been higher since December 1990 to February 1991 for women was estimated at 71.8%, the highest since comparable records began in 1971 The increase in the employment rate for women over the last few years has been due partly to changes to the State Pension age for women, resulting in fewer women retiring between the ages of 60 and 65 years. Estimates for November 2018 to January 2019 show 32.71 million people aged 16 years and over in employment, 473,000 more than for a year earlier. This estimated annual increase of 473,000 was due mainly to more people working full-time (up 424,000 on the year to reach 24.12 million). Part-time working also contributed with an increase of 49,000 on the year to reach 8.60 million. Great news for all involved!