Oil central BP braces itself for shareholder uprising after climbing around its climate marks

April 28, 2023: -On Thursday, BP is bracing itself for a shareholder revolt at its annual general meeting; some of the U.K.’s most considerable pension funds are planning to ratchet up the force on the oil major following it rolled back its emission decrease targets in the wake of record gain.

Dutch team Follow This, a small activist investor and campaign team with stakes in several Big Oil firms, has tabled a resolution at BP’s shareholder discussion.

It calls on the energy climate accord and commits to carbon emissions cuts by 2030. Those emissions cuts, Follow This says, including emissions generated by clients’ use of their oil and gas, stated Scope 3 emissions.

A separate shareholder rebellion could see a few pension funds vote against the choosing again of chairman Helge Lund as a reply to the firm’s move to measure back its green pledges without shareholder permission.

Follow This expresses it anticipates BP’s annual general meeting to be “contentious”, cautioning investors to be “rightfully concerned” about BP dialling back its climate strategy between an ever-worsening climate crisis.

“We trust that investors wishing that voting was not necessary for 2022 now realise that voting is crucial in compelling BP to align with Paris,” Mark van Baal, the owner of Follow This, said after BP’s annual general discussion.

“Paris-aligned voting has to start momentum in 2023.”

BP, one of the initial energy firms to announce an ambition to cut emissions net zero “by 2050 or sooner,” is urging shareholders to oppose the resolution by Follow This, saying it infringes on the board’s responsibility and calculations for the company’s strategy.

It also told the resolution as “not clear,” “simplistic”, and “disruptive.”

Proxy advisors ISS and Glass Lewis have stated that shareholders of BP did not vote for the resolution shown by Follow This. So it has Norway’s $1.4 trillion sovereign wealth fund.