BP Announces New Chairman

BP has announced its appointment of Helge Lund, or ‘Mr Oil’, as its new chairman.

Former Statoil boss, Helge Lund, is soon to become BP’s new chairman. He will take over from Carl-Henric Svanberg, who announced his plans to retire last autumn.

Lund is a big name in the oil industry. He led the team at Statoil, Norway’s national oil company, for 10 years. He left in 2014 and joined BP Group in 2015 to help the company merge with Shell.

When he becomes chairman, he will be focusing on growth plans and innovation. In particular, he will be working to find ways to significantly increase production and drive renewable energy in the industry. Lund will bring his experience of expanding Statoil and turning it into a global player to his new role. While acting as BP chairman, Lund will also remain chairman of Novo Nordisk, a healthcare group.

Speaking of his new role, he said, “BP is a great company. Now as a non-executive, it is a huge privilege for me to be asked to lead an experienced and diverse board”.

His predecessor, Svanberg, also commented on the appointment, “our industry is changing faster than ever as the world focuses on meeting the dual challenge of more energy with fewer emissions. Helge has a track record of leadership in addressing these issues, characterised by his open-minded and forward-looking approach”.

Lund, from Norway, was handpicked from an impressive list of candidates for the job, with a number of potential prospects from across the globe in the UK, Europe and the US.

Lund, who is 55, will take over as chairman at the start of next year, though he is set to join the board in September of this year.

Svanberg, who become chief executive of the oil firm after the Gulf disaster, commented on his retirement. He said, “I have enjoyed my time as chairman, made special by the great people that I’ve been privileged to work with at BP, from Bob [Dudley, Chief Executive] to the team throughout the company. I am sure that Helge will enjoy the role as much as I have”.

BP recently reported that last year’s profits reached $2.8billion from its global operations.