US investment firm formally nominates candidates for ExxonMobil board of directors

HOUSTON (ICIS)–ExxonMobil said on Tuesday that it is evaluating nominations to the company’s board of directors made by US investment firm Engine No 1, which thinks the US-based global energy major should implement a strategic plan for sustainable value creation by fully exploring growth areas, including more significant investment in clean energy.

In a statement, ExxonMobil said that it has engaged with Engine No 1 since mid-December.

“The company’s board affairs committee will evaluate Engine No 1’s notice of nomination and nominees in line with the corporation’s by-laws,” ExxonMobil said.

Engine No 1 was founded by Chris James and is backed by the California Teachers’ Retirement System, the nation’s second largest pension fund owner and holder of $300m of ExxonMobil stock.

Director candidates submitted by Engine No 1 include Gregory Goff, former CEO of Andeavor; Kaisa Hietala, former executive vice president of renewable products at Neste; Alexander Karsner, senior strategist at X, the innovation lab of Google parent Alphabet; and Anders Runevad, former CEO of Vestas Wind Systems, a wind turbine manufacturing, installation, and servicing company.

“Investors increasingly want to see companies focused on the long-term and ExxonMobil is no exception,” Engine No 1 said on Tuesday.

“We believe that ExxonMobil’s board needs new members who have proven success positioning energy companies for today as well as tomorrow, and who are sufficiently independent from the current board to ensure a clean break from a strategy and mindset that have led to years of value destruction and poorly positioned the company for the future,” the firm said.

Notable among the nominees from Engine No 1 is experience in the oil and gas industry and an emphasis on clean energy.

“These four independent nominees – each of whom brings a differentiated skill set that makes them uniquely suited for this challenge – can help the board chart a new value-creating path, including better long-term capital discipline, strategic planning, and management incentives,” the investment firm said.

ExxonMobil is a crude oil refiner and producer of petrochemicals as well as an oil and gas producer.