BP Faces Protest Vote as Shareholders Challenge Blocked Resolution

Pension funds that backed a climate shareholder resolution blocked by BP will vote against a board proposal on climate reporting. The move is intended as a protest vote to signal discontent. Follow This says BP declined to include its shareholder proposal in the AGM notice.

Legal ultimatum and response

Follow This sent a letter before action giving BP one week to respond. The deadline expired on 1 April with no change. Filmogaz.com understands BP rejected the legal demand, saying the legal conditions for the shareholder resolution were not met.

What resolution 23 would do

Resolution 23, put forward by the board, asks shareholders to annul two earlier special resolutions. Those 2015 and 2019 resolutions require disclosures on alignment with the Paris Agreement, capital expenditure versus Paris goals, and investment allocation metrics.

Those earlier measures are part of BP’s constitution. The board argues they are now duplicative and overlap with mandatory disclosure frameworks. BP says revocation will improve the clarity of its reporting while continuing material and comparable disclosures and its net zero ambition.

Investor reaction and voting plans

Follow This and 12 of its 16 co-filers said they will concentrate on opposing resolution 23. They described a vote against it as the clearest way to challenge the blocking of their proposal. The group encouraged other investors to consider the same action.

• Signatories to the open letter include Bernische Pensionskasse, Ethos Foundation, and Falkirk Council Pension Fund.
• Four other institutional co-filers said they will announce voting intentions later.

Additional voting intentions

Follow This also intends to vote against the re-appointment of the chair. It will oppose a resolution to allow virtual-only meetings. The group will support a shareholder motion from the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility.

That motion asks BP to justify its upstream oil and gas spending. BP has accepted that particular shareholder resolution.

Leadership and stakes ahead of the AGM

The annual general meeting is scheduled for 23 April. BP officially appointed Meg O’Neill as CEO yesterday. Albert Manifold replaced Helge Lund as board chair after last year’s AGM.

Last year, 24% of shareholders voted against Lund. If more than 25% oppose resolution 23, it will fail. Mark van Baal, Follow This’s chief executive, said a 25% protest vote is conceivable.

Next steps and potential outcomes

Follow This is weighing further legal avenues after BP declined the letter before action. In the short term, the protest vote is their chosen tactic. The result on 23 April will show whether shareholders challenge the blocked resolution effectively.