BP chief executive has resigned with immediate effect.
The Irish man has stepped down after he told the company he was “not fully transparent in his previous disclosures” about relationships with colleagues before he was CEO, according to the oil and gas giant.
This followed allegations about personal relationships involving Looney, the company said.
An investigation with the support of external legal counsel is ongoing.
“Mr Looney has today informed the company that he now accepts that he was not fully transparent in his previous disclosures. He did not provide details of all relationships and accepts he was obligated to make more complete disclosure,” said the company.
The investigation follows an earlier probe into similar matters, which was disclosed by BP on Tuesday evening.
“In May 2022, the Board received and reviewed allegations, with the support of external legal counsel, relating to Mr Looney’s conduct in respect of personal relationships with company colleagues. The information came from an anonymous source,” stated BP.
“During that review, Mr Looney disclosed a small number of historical relationships with colleagues prior to becoming CEO. No breach of the Company’s Code of Conduct was found. However, the Board sought and was given assurances by Mr Looney regarding disclosure of past personal relationships, as well as his future behaviour.”
The Company said it “has strong values” and the Board expects everyone at the company to behave in accordance with those values.
“All leaders in particular are expected to act as role models and to exercise good judgement in a way that earns the trust of others,” it added.
Murray Auchincloss, the Company’s CFO, will act as CEO on an interim basis.