BP, one of the Big Five oil companies, announced its 2012 third-quarter profits this morning. The company reported earnings of $5.4 billion — three percent higher than last year. This brings the company’s 2012 profits to $9.7 billion in the first nine months of the year.

Below is a glimpse at where BP spends its billions of dollars in profits:

– BP has already spent $6.9 million lobbying Congress this year, according to the latest Federal Election Commission figures. Since 2011, BP spent almost $15 million on lobbying Congress.

– BP has $16 billion in cash reserves.

– BP has contributed close to $300,000 to federal candidate campaigns in the 2012 election cycle. Republican candidates received 60 percent of these contributions.

– Despite higher profits this quarter, BP’s oil production is 4 percent lower than this time last year (1.15 million barrels of net liquids per day vs. 1.19 million barrels per day for the 3rd quarter of 2011)

Excess oil from the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico washed onto Louisiana shores in the wake of Hurricane Isaac this past September. Tar clumps formed from oil were found on several beaches. The U.S, Coast Guard reported that oil-soaked pelicans and other wildlife were also found on the Louisiana coast. An estimated 1 million barrels of oil remain in the Gulf of Mexico as a result of the spill.

ExxonMobil and Shell are the next of the Big Five companies to release third-quarter profits on Thursday November 1, 2012.