The Guardian: Mark van Baal, from the Dutch shareholder activist group Follow This, warns that a career steeped in oil reserves may make it difficult for Looney to “imagine a future beyond oil and gas” or see renewables “as a business opportunity not a chore”.
Bernard Looney is hailed as a moderniser but made his name at the company pumping crude
So, how “green” is BP’s new chief executive? “It’s a legitimate question,” says Mark Lewis, head of sustainability at the asset management arm of French investment bank BNP Paribas. “The burden of truth will rest firmly on his shoulders.”
Read the entire story with a summary of our key demands in The Guardian
Key demands
Activist investors say oil firms must:
Cut their own emissions
Oil companies can do a lot to reduce CO2 emitted during production – by, for example, cutting methane leaks from rigs and stopping “flaring” – the burning of “waste” gas from oilfields.
Take responsibility for the carbon footprint of the energy they sell
Outgoing boss Bob Dudley stated that BP “cannot control” how people choose to drive or heat their homes, but setting an emissions target for the energy they produce should help a shift towards clean sources.
Set a clear strategy for hitting the Paris climate goals.
