Woodside hits back at Glass Lewis’ climate call
The energy giant says a major proxy adviser was relying on statements from green activist groups.
CGI Glass Lewis’s opposition to the re-election of Woodside Energy’s chairman and its climate strategy is groundless, the oil and gas giant has said, arguing the proxy adviser was relying on statements from green activist groups.
Glass Lewis last week recommended shareholders vote against Richard Goyder’s re-election at Woodside’s AGM on April 24 because of what it called a “dismissive” attitude to concerns about emissions and climate. Glass Lewis also urged shareholders to reject Woodside’s decarbonisation plan.
The proxy adviser referred to a report by the Australian Centre for Corporate Responsibility that Woodside under Mr Goyder had been “persistently unresponsive” to shareholder concerns about climate risk management and was pursuing a growth strategy not in shareholders’ interests.
Woodside said the research house’s response “appears to have been informed” by two member statements submitted to this year’s AGM.
“While Glass Lewis’ report says it does not share the concerns raised in these statements, they appear to be the main source for its assessment and commentary. We would like to point out that these two member statements were prepared by two civil society organisations, which both take an activist stance on climate issues and the fossil fuels sector,” Woodside said in a statement on Tuesday.
“The shareholders who submitted those members’ statements hold up to 0.005 per cent of Woodside’s shares on issue. We do not believe their views are representative of the majority of Woodside’s shareholders, whether institutional or retail.”
A top energy analyst has also hit back at the proxy house, saying it has “lost objectivity and equity” and was acting more like an anti-industry activist than a body representing client interests.
Woodside rejected the claims used by Glass Lewis to oppose both motions.
“We believe Glass Lewis’ recommendations in relation to the endorsement of the CTAP and the re-election of Mr Goyder are based on an incorrect conclusion as to the level of shareholder engagement and responsiveness to shareholder feedback,” Woodside said.
“Mr Goyder personally attended 75 investor meetings in 2023 and 2024 that discussed climate and governance matters. This demonstrates Mr Goyder’s personal commitment and responsiveness to shareholders. In addition to his contributions in relation to climate-related matters, the depth of Mr Goyder’s skills and experience has and continues to deliver significant value to the Company and its shareholders.”
While Woodside has been on the receiving end of strong protest votes at its annual meetings on climate grounds – for example, its 2021 climate report was adopted by just 51 per cent of shareholders – independent agencies such as Morningstar Sustainalytics rate the company’s performance as at worst a “medium” ESG risk rating.
Proxy adviser Institutional Shareholder Services backed the re-election of Mr Goyder to the board and said the debate over his tarnished record at Qantas should not extend to Woodside.
Still, Woodside has in recent weeks moved to curtail the threat of further shareholder unrest and at an investor briefing last month – the company’s chief executive insisted the company was making meaningful progress in reducing emissions.
In March, Woodside also released a revised climate action plan — including a Scope 3 emissions target for the first time — which chief executive Meg O’Neill has highlighted ahead of a critical annual general meeting.
Mr Goyder earlier this year brought his retirement as chairman of Qantas forward by a year following a series of controversies at the airline.
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