Dive Brief:
- Bernard Looney, CEO of BP, has resigned from the oil giant nearly four years after assuming leadership of the company, according to a Tuesday announcement. Murray Auchincloss, BP’s CFO, has been named interim CEO.
- Looney’s decision to resign was not due to BP’s financial performance, but instead due to past personal relationships with company colleagues, according to the announcement.
- Looney joined BP in 1991 as a drilling engineer, and became CEO in 2020. During his years as CEO, he led BP along its journey to become an “integrated energy company.”
Dive Insight:
BP noted Tuesday that in May 2022, it received and reviewed allegations from an anonymous tip that Looney had participated in personal relationships with company colleagues.
Although Looney admitted to having “a small number of historical relationships with colleagues prior to becoming CEO,” no breach of BP’s code of conduct was found. Looney then gave BP’s board of directors full disclosure of his past personal relationships, and made assurances about his future behavior.
However, similar allegations were “recently received,” which BP “immediately began investigating,” according to Tuesday’s announcement. Looney acknowledged to the company on Sept. 12 that he did not give a full accounting of past relationships and should have.
“[BP] has strong values and the Board expects everyone at the Company to behave in accordance with those values,” BP said in its announcement. “All leaders in particular are expected to act as role models and to exercise good judgement in a way that earns the trust of others.”
Unless Auchincloss eventually assumes the position permanently, Looney’s departure creates an opening for the top decision maker at one of the most notable oil, gas and convenience retailing companies in the world.
A spokesperson from BP did not respond by press time to an inquiry for details on Looney’s departure.
Looney, 53, has spent his entire professional career with BP, according to his LinkedIn bio. Prior to being named CEO in 2020, he held several leadership positions with the company, including chief executive of upstream operations; chief operating officer of production; executive vice president of developments; and senior vice president of BP Alaska.
During his run as CEO, Looney had pledged to reduce BP’s carbon footprint while investing in clean energy. However, earlier this year, the company faced shareholder criticism with its plan to scale back its emission reduction targets. BP had previously said its emissions would be 35% to 40% lower by 2030, but changed those targets to 20% to 30% in early February.
Looney also led BP through its $1.3 billion acquisition of TravelCenters of America in March. After selling about 700 of its company-operated c-stores in 2007, this marked a major milestone in the company’s re-entry into fully owned and operated c-stores, once again making it a top player in the space.
London-based BP owns a variety of convenience retailing brands across the U.S. Besides its own branded stores and those of the Thorntons arm, BP’s umbrella also includes Amoco, Ampm and TravelCenters of America. Its U.S. headquarters are in Houston.
