BP's chief executive officer details refined ethical code

British Petroleum Co. plc has set out to develop a management process to ensure that its business principles are followed, in response to growing public concern over the environmental and social performances of major companies. The move follows Royal Dutch/Shell's recent revision of its business principles following protests over the Brent spar and allegations over its relationship with the Nigerian government.

May 4, 1998

2 min read

The move follows Royal Dutch/Shell's recent revision of its business principles following protests over the Brent spar and allegations over its relationship with the Nigerian government.

John Browne, BP group CEO, told the company's annual gathering of shareholders on Apr. 16 how policy statements covering health and safety, environment, financial control, ethics, and human rights have been brought together in a single publication.

"We are developing a management process to provide an assurance to the board that our principles are being upheld," said Browne. "Responsibility only begins with the assurance that your own operations and activities are being run in an acceptable way.

"Companies have wider responsibilities as well. We need to be involved in the public policy debate on the issues where what we do can affect the world around us, and conversely where policy decisions by governments or international agencies can have an impact on our operations."

Browne's statement built on an earlier briefing of investment analysts, at which he claimed BP could meet its plan to increase profits by $2 billion/year within 5 years, even if oil remains at $14/bbl (OGJ, Apr. 13, 1998, p. 26).

Browne told shareholders BP is becoming "a company for all seasons," and that, while financial results are essential to success, there are other elements to get right.

"Behaving ethically and with concern for people and the environment isn't something new for us," said Browne. "I hope, and I believe, that those things are part of the basic values of the company-and for most other companies.

"But the level of concern and the scrutiny that is developing means that we have to be more systematic in handling these issues than we have been. We have to be clear what our standards are, and we have to have a process in place to ensure those standards are being met, consistently and universally."