Proxy Season Pushback

BP Chair Faces Pushback Over Leaving Off Climate Proposal

BP Chair Albert Manifold faced difficulty in his re-election, with 18% of shareholders voting against him, including Legal and General who owns 1.5% of BP.

Change in norms: BP faced backlash from investors due to “unprecedented action” by the company when it outright refused to include a resolution filed by Follow This and pension funds that called for the company’s long-term strategies for if oil and gas demand declines. Glass Lewis advised a vote against Manifold.

Good faith: Manifold stated in the AGM that “all of the board’s decisions relating to the resolutions at this year’s AGM were made in good conscience, made with an aim to build a more valuable BP for our shareholders.”

Investors pushback: Shareholders rejected two resolutions at BP’s AGM: one that called for axing climate-related data reports on alignment with the Paris Agreement and another that called for fully virtual annual meetings. Both proposals only received 47% support, where they would need 75% to pass.

What We are Watching This Week

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