BP CONFIRMED TODAY that CEO Tony Hayward will step down from his post in October. He will receive a compensation package worth over $13.5 million – but he still won’t be out of a job.
Hayward, 58, is reported to be taking up a non-executive role in BP’s Russian subisdiary, and paid a year’s salary worth around €1 million, in lieu of the one year’s notice he is entitled too. The company said the decision was made mutually.
He will also get an immediate annual pension of about €716,000 when he leaves the CEO position. The full pension pot is valued over €13 million, according to the BBC.
Hayward has been heavily criticised by US politicans and residents along the Gulf coast for his handling of the leak in the weeks after the April spill. He was accused of ‘stonewalling‘ the US Congress when questioned about the leak and subsequent clean-up.
Bob Dudley, who will take over from Hayward, faces the unenviable task of overseeing the clean-up operation, and improving the company’s public image.
Today, the company posted a loss of $17 billion (€13 billion) – a record quarterly loss for the company. The company has reported profits of $4.39 billion (€3.38) for Q2 last year. BP also set aside $32.2 billion to cover costs arising from the oil spill, and will sell $30 billion in assets over the next 18 months to boost its finances.
Greenpeace activists in London succeeded in closing almost 50 BP petrol stations in a move timed to coincide with the company’s quarterly report. The day-long action is in protest against BP’s reaction to the oil spill, which Greenpeace says hasn’t gone far enough.
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