BP’s Shares Plunge After Board Removes Chairman Albert Manifold With “Immediate Effect”

Shares of British Petroleum (BP) plummeted on Tuesday after it announced the removal of Chairman Albert Manifold with "immediate effect". BP said that the decision was taken unanimously by the board, citing “governance oversight and conduct issues” as the reason for Manifold's removal.

London-listed shares of the company fell as much as 9% after the news broke, as per CNBC. The stocks were seen trading over 6% lower later on.

Manifold had received lower-than-typical support last month at BP's annual general meeting. A majority of 81.8% of shareholders voted in favor of him as BP chair. Board members need 50% of the vote to be elected and they usually get close to unanimous support.

Senior Independent Director at BP, Amanda Blanc, in a statement, said: “Albert has helped bring a welcome focus and pace to bp's transformation. However, the board has been surprised and disappointed to learn of governance oversight and conduct issues it deems unacceptable and has taken decisive action.”  

The board has chosen Ian Tyler as Interim Chair. A former chief executive of Balfour Beatty, the FTSE 250 infrastructure group, Tyler is also chair of Grafton Group and a director at the mining firm Anglo American, according to The Guardian.

A succession process for a permanent Chair will be initiated, the company said, but did not give out any specific details.

Manifold was appointed in October 2025, as per The Guardian. He lasted only eight months. He was tasked with initiating a change in BP's strategy, ditching renewable energy investments and refocusing on fossil fuel extraction.  


Manifold had fired BP's chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, who was less than two years into the role. Meg O'Neill was appointed as the CEO in December.

“The Board has been very impressed with Meg O'Neill since she joined as CEO. She has extensive industry and operational experience and real clarity about the direction and opportunity for the business,” BP's press release said today.

Manifold is BP's second senior leader to lose his job due to conduct reasons within three years., Bernard Looney, who was Auchincloss's predecessor, exited in September 2023 for after he failed to disclose sexual relationships with colleagues when he was made chief executive. Looney was later denied £32 million in pay and shares after the company's board stated it had been misled.