[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] On the 1st (local time), ExxonMobil added two activist investors to its board, the Wall Street Journal reported on the same day.
ExxonMobil, which suffered a massive loss of $22 billion last year and has been failing to properly follow the industry trend of investing in eco-friendly energy, continues to appear to yield to activist investors. On the other hand, it shows a late but clear intention to accelerate investment in eco-friendly energy businesses.
Darren Woods, CEO of ExxonMobil, said, "The newly joined directors will play a role in responding to the changes in the oil industry moving toward a low-carbon economy."
The two new directors are Jeffrey Ubben and Michael Angelakis.
Ubben is the founder of the investment firm ValueAct. He mainly invested in energy companies and related technologies that reduce carbon gas emissions. ValueAct invested in the electric truck startup Nikola, and Ubben is listed as an internal director of Nikola. After leaving ValueAct last year, Ubben said he wanted to focus on socially responsible investing. In an interview with the WSJ, he also expressed his intention to invest $1 billion in major oil companies through his new investment firm Inclusive Capital Partners. He argued that major oil companies should reduce costs and dividends and make excessive investments in eco-friendly energy.
According to sources, Ubben invested $75 million in British Petroleum (BP) in March last year. The sources also said he attempted to enter BP's board but failed.
Angelakis is a former CFO and Vice Chairman of Comcast and currently serves as CEO of the investment firm Altairos Group. He also served as chairman of the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. Altairos Group invests in various companies with the purpose of long-term investment.
The WSJ predicted that despite the addition of these two directors, pressure from activist investors on ExxonMobil will continue. On the same day, Engine No. 1, a group of activist investors, publicly announced that they would secure four seats on ExxonMobil's board. Engine No. 1 claimed, "ExxonMobil acknowledges the need for board replacement but has failed to secure directors with successful careers in the changing energy industry."
Activist investors are pressuring ExxonMobil to present a clear strategy related to investment in eco-friendly energy. The WSJ pointed out that ExxonMobil claims fossil fuels will be needed for decades to come and that its investment in eco-friendly energy businesses lags behind competitors such as BP and Royal Dutch Shell.
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