Yahoo Finance Woodside Chairman Goyder Facing Ouster Calls Over Climate Stance
(Bloomberg) -- Advisory firm CGI Glass Lewis is recommending Woodside Energy Group Ltd. shareholders vote to remove Chairman Richard Goyder at the company’s annual meeting this month due to questions over the company’s climate strategy.
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The Woodside chair should be held accountable for his track record of dismissing shareholder concerns on climate risk management and not disclosing enough information on the topic, CGI Glass Lewis said in a note to clients on Friday. The opposition to Goyder comes after Qantas Airways Ltd. announced last October that he would step down as chairman following a series of scandals at Australia’s biggest airline.
Woodside, the country’s largest oil and gas producer, has been aggressively ramping up production of liquefied natural gas, but has faced criticism from the Australian Centre for Corporate Responsibility and others for disregarding climate risks associated with the strategy. HESTA, an investor in Woodside, last month urged the company to consider adding new board members with the skills to navigate the climate transition.
Read More: Qantas Chairman to Quit Next Year to Repair Airline’s Brand
The fossil fuel producer — one of Australia’s largest polluters — is targeting a 15% reduction in its net equity scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, and is planning new measures to curb scope 3 pollution, Chief Executive Officer Meg O’Neill said last month.
Woodside released an updated climate plan in March in response to shareholder feedback, but it remains “materially unchanged,” the ACCR said in a statement on Friday.
The Perth-based company’s AGM will be held on April 24.
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