BP’s Top Sustainability Exec To Depart As The ESG Grift Keeps Dying A Slow Death

We think it’s time we can officially present the ESG grift – which we have spoken out against and called a scam for the better part of the last decade – dead.

The latest casualty? BP’s top sustainability executive, Giulia Chierchia, will leave the company on June 1, marking another high-profile exit and an obvious signpost in the oil giant’s sharp pivot away from green energy and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals, according to The Guardian.

Chierchia, who joined BP in 2020 to help steer it toward a “net zero” future, was hired by then-CEO Bernard Looney and became the architect of the company’s now-defunct sustainability strategy.

Her departure will not trigger a replacement; instead, her team will be folded into other business units to “simplify our structure” and enable “quicker decision-making and clearer accountabilities,” BP said.

Chierchia’s exit follows closely on the heels of BP Chairman Helge Lund’s announcement that he too would step down next year. Both executives had come under growing scrutiny after BP formally abandoned its green energy transition in favor of doubling down on oil and gas, a shift driven by falling profits and pressure from shareholders.

“In February, we announced a fundamental reset of our strategy – to grow the upstream, focus the downstream and invest with discipline in the transition – and we have already made significant progress,” said CEO Murray Auchincloss.

The Guardian writes that at BP’s latest annual general meeting, Lund faced a shareholder revolt over his role in the collapse of the green strategy. Meanwhile, activist hedge fund Elliott Management has taken a 5% stake in the company and reportedly demanded a full reversal of its low-carbon investments and an overhaul of its board.

BP’s financial performance has deteriorated, with first-quarter 2025 profits nearly halved to $1.4 billion from $2.7 billion a year prior. Its full-year 2024 profits fell by a third to $8.9 billion. Shares dropped over 2% on the news, continuing a trend of underperformance relative to competitors since Looney first charted a net-zero course.

In response, the company has pledged to slash spending, particularly in renewable ventures, and accelerate asset sales. It plans to cut 2025 capital spending by $500 million to $14.5 billion and raise divestments to as much as $4 billion this year. The goal is to offload $20 billion in assets by the end of 2027.

BP’s ESG era—once held up as a model for oil industry transformation—is now officially over, buried under investor discontent, falling returns, and an unmistakable return to fossil fuel fundamentals.