BP &lt;BP> MAY HAVE TO RAISE BID -  ANALYSTS

  British Petroleum Co PLC may have to
  raise its planned 70 dlrs a share tender offer for the publicly
  traded shares of Standard Oil Co &lt;SRD>, analysts said.
      "There's a lot of speculation here that someway or other
  they would be forced to come up with another bid," said Rosario
  Ilaqua of L.F. Rothschild.
      And despite BP managing director David Simon's denial today
  that BP would raise the offer, the analysts said that remained
  a distinct possibility.
      Analysts said they base their thinking on Royal Dutch/Shell
  Group's &lt;RD> &lt;SC> bid to buy the outstanding stake of Shell Oil
  Co in 1984 and 1985. Royal Dutch/Shell eventually raised its
  initial 55 dlrs a share offer to 60 dlrs a share, after
  lawsuits by minority shareholders.
      "I think they're going to have to go a little higher
  eventually, just as Royal Dutch/Shell had to go a little higher
  for the Shell Oil minority shares," Bruce Lazier of Prescott
  Ball and Turben said. He estimated a price of 75 dlrs a share.
      Royal Dutch/Shell offered 55 dlrs a share for the 30.5 pct
  of Shell Oil it did not already own in January of 1984. After
  objections from minority shareholders about the price, Royal
  Dutch/Shell raised its bid and began a 58 dlrs a share tender
  offer in April 1984.
      But shareholders sued and a court blocked completion of the
  offer. After months of wrangling over the worth of Shell Oil,
  Royal Dutch/Shell agreed to another two dlrs increase.
      It ended up paying 5.67 billion dlrs for the outstanding
  Shell Oil stake, a significant premium to its original bid of
  about 5.2 billion dlrs.
      The analysts made their comments before Simon's remarks at
  a BP press conference in New York this afternoon.
      Sanford Margoshes of Shearson Lehman Brothers Inc told
  clients this morning that a sweetened offer was possible. The
  analyst said the bid could be raised by two dlrs a share.
      Analysts do not expect regulatory hurdles because of the
  Royal Dutch/Shell group precedent. But there may be shareholder
  lawsuits for the same reason, they said.
      Goldman Sachs and Co, BP's investment advisor, advised the
  Shell Oil board in 1984 and 1985.
  

