08 October 2019 – The CEOs of BP and Shell were today targeted by Greenpeace activists at the annual Oil and Money Conference dinner calling out their complicity in the climate emergency.
Eluding security at the Grosvenor Hotel in Mayfair, London, the activists gained access to the room hosting the dinner for the great and the good of the global oil industry.
With the industry’s prestigious Executive of the Year award due to pass from BP’s Bob Dudley to Shell’s Ben van Beurden, Greenpeace activists infiltrate the dinner, taking to the stage with a banner reading “BP and Shell Climate Criminals”.
Mel Evans, senior climate campaigner at Greenpeace UK:
BP, Shell and the rest of the oil industry are here today to slap each other on the back for pushing us deeper into the climate emergency. They’re full of warm words pretending to support a low carbon future. The reality is these companies’ thirst for oil remains unabated.
There’s simply no place for companies like BP and Shell if we’re to tackle the climate crisis. People young and old across the world are demanding radical action to stop a climate breakdown and build a better future. All the fine suits and five star meals can’t hide the truth – BP and Shell are climate criminals. It’s time they ended the search for new oil and switched to renewables or shut up shop and handed cash back to investors.
The protest comes in a bad week for BP and Shell. On Wednesday the Royal Shakespeare Company dropped BP as a sponsor citing climate concerns. This was followed soon by the National Theatre who ended their sponsorship deal with Shell.
Greenpeace argues the business models of companies like BP and Shell are in direct opposition to efforts to prevent catastrophic climate change. Both companies plan to expand their oil and gas production at a time when it needs to be dramatically reduced if we’re to meet the international target of limiting global warming to 1.5C. Shell have planned to invest $149 Billion in the search for oil and gas out to 2030. At the same time the companies also outspend other oil majors in efforts to lobby against climate action with BP topping the list.
ENDS
