BP’s top sustainability executive, Giulia Chierchia, will leave the company on June 1, marking another high-profile exit and an obvious signpost in the oil giant’s sharp pivot away from green energy and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals, according to The Guardian.
Chierchia, who joined BP in 2020 to help steer it toward a “net zero” future, was hired by then-CEO Bernard Looney and became the architect of the company’s now-defunct sustainability strategy.
Her departure will not trigger a replacement; instead, her team will be folded into other business units to “simplify our structure” and enable “quicker decision-making and clearer accountabilities,” BP said.
Chierchia’s exit follows closely on the heels of BP Chairman Helge Lund’s announcement that he too would step down next year. Both executives had come under growing scrutiny after BP formally abandoned its green energy transition in favor of doubling down on oil and gas, a shift driven by falling profits and pressure from shareholders.
