The boss of super fund HESTA says Woodside Energy has been sent a clear message after the company’s climate plan was knocked down at a tempestuous annual meeting on Wednesday.
Woodside Energy chair Richard Goyder won another term on the Perth-based oil and gas business’s board with a 16 per cent ‘no’ vote at an event twice-interrupted by protests.
But the $54 billion company’s climate plan failed to pass a non-binding ballot, with a whopping 58 per cent of shareholders against.
On Friday, Woodside share lost 1.1 per cent to be $28.26. That’s the lowest since February 2022, prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
HESTA chief executive Debby Blakey said “investors have sent the Woodside board a clear message of the need for a much more ambitious Climate Transition Action Plan”.
She said the super fund — which has about $74bn under management — would keep engaging with Woodside on the move to a low carbon economy.
Bringing on “appropriately skilled directors” to accelerate technology and cultural change would be crucial, Ms Blakey said in a statement.
“We understand positive progress is being made on improving board capability and it’s our expectation. . . that Woodside continues to prioritise this issue,” she said.
That follows a reported move by HESTA to put forward its own candidates as directors in March.
Investors did strongly back a proposal for a new Woodside director in former Schlumberger executive Ashok Belani, who has been touted as highly experienced in the energy transition.
Mr Belani marched home with 99.7 per cent support.
Woodside’s board of directors sat in the front row. Ashok Belani. Credit: Kelsey Reid/The West Australian
Former Treasurer Ben Wyatt joined the board in 2021 while financial executive Angela Minas started as a director last year.
Ian MacFarlane — Federal Resources Minister — was hit by a sizeable ‘no’ vote in 2023.
The strong opposition to the climate strategy will leave questions over how the energy giant moves next.
Woodside put a previous plan to vote in 2022, which passed with a 51 per cent approval. The business has pledged $US5 billion for low carbon projects by 2030, with about $335 million spent so far.
Chief executive Meg O’Neill told journalists after the event that Woodside would be careful not to make promises the company can’t deliver.