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BP denies ex-CEO Looney a $41 million payout, saying he misled the firm over work relationships

The former chief executive of BP has been denied a 32.4 million pound ($41 million US) payout after he was found to have misled the company over his past relationships with colleagues, the energy giant said Wednesday.

Bernard Looney resigned in September after acknowledging he had not been “fully transparent” in his disclosures about his work relationships.

BP said the company sought assurances from Looney in 2022 about the relationships but has concluded that his statements were “inaccurate and incomplete.”

“Mr. Looney knowingly misled the board,” BP said. “The board has determined that this amounts to serious misconduct.”

The firm said the 32.4 million pounds’ worth of salary, pension, bonus payments and shares have been forfeited as a result. Some payments already given to Looney, including 50% of the cash bonus paid for the 2022 financial year, will be “clawed back,” it added.

The move reflects “the decision by the board that Mr. Looney should not retain any variable pay relating to service following the date of the misleading assurances,” BP said.

Looney took on the role in February 2020 after spending his career at BP, having joined as an engineer in 1991. He has been replaced by chief financial officer Murray Auchincloss on an interim basis while BP searches for a new CEO.