BP chair Helge Lund to step down as Aviva chief heads search for successor

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BP is facing pressure to cut costs.
Oil giant BP could leave the North Sea, according to reports.

BP has announced that its chair Helge Lund will step down, with Aviva chief executive Amanda Blanc – a non-executive director for the blue-chip oil giant – set to lead the search for a successor. 

Lund is expected to stay on until 2026, which BP says will “ensure an orderly transition.” 

Blanc has said that BP’s board will be conducting a “comprehensive search” to find candidates with “the credibility and relevant experience to lead the board and continue driving management’s safe execution of the reset strategy.” 

Helge said: “Having fundamentally reset our strategy, BP’s focus now is on delivering the strategy at pace, improving performance and growing shareholder value. 

“Now is the right time to start the process to find my successor and enable an orderly and seamless handover.”

He added: “The board and I are committed to supporting Murray and his team, and to overseeing bp’s delivery of its strategic and financial objectives as we set out in our recent Capital Markets Update.”

This leadership reshuffle comes amid a turbulent time for BP, after activist hedge fund Elliott Investment Management took a stake in February, sparking a share price spike and speculation around a break up of the firm. 

Helge’s leadership of the board came under pressure in March, when the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) took a stance against voting for his re-election as chair – the group said they had concerns over recent strategic decisions. 

BP has faced broader cost squeezes in recent months. 

In March, BP’s chief executive Murray Auchincloss took a £2.3m pay cut after profits were slashed at the firm. 

Auchincloss revealed in February that plans are underway for a “fundamental reset” – including ditching a series of the firm’s green pledges. 

News of the reset followed a 50 per cent decline in fourth quarter profit.

He said of the rolling back of green targets: “Our optimism in 2020 for a fast energy transition was misplaced and we went too far, too fast in our plans.”