BP 2012 Annual Report Download - page 11

As 2012 progressed the board saw the company start to move forward with greater
confidence. It is important that this momentum continues.
Our board committees have provided effective oversight of the company and its
operations, which has enabled the board to focus on its three priorities. Outside the
boardroom, our non-executive directors have continued to pay visits to key parts of the
business. My own visits this year included Angola, Azerbaijan, the North Sea, Japan and
the US.
The board has seen substantial change. For this reason, we have asked Antony Burgmans
to serve for a further three years. I am pleased that we will continue to benefit from his
experience and understanding of the company. Byron Grote is retiring after 33 years with
BP, including more than 12 years on the board. I thank him for his dedication and the
exceptional contribution he has made to this company. As we move through 2013, the
board is well balanced, with deep experience in our industry and a broad range of skills
across business and finance.
We will refresh the board as and when required. I believe board diversity – including the
representation of women at the top – helps to make boards more effective. We will
continue to work to identify candidates from a range of backgrounds who can make a
unique and powerful contribution to BP.
One of the vital tasks of the board is to ensure strategy is matched to the world we see
ahead. Energy remains the engine of progress, and we expect rising populations and
increasing industrialization to generate strong demand to 2030 and beyond. The world will
continue to be dependent on fossil fuels in the medium term. Along with providing the
hydrocarbons needed, we are also involved in developing the resources, technologies and
policies required over the long term.
Our industry keeps evolving. In the past international oil companies dominated access to
resources. Then national oil companies took control of the greater share. But much of the
easiest-to-reach oil has been developed. So we are now entering a third era, where
co-operation between partners is the key to unlocking the resources found in the most
challenging locations. For BP, advantage now comes from exceptional capability rather
than exceptional scale. Our future is about high-margin, high-quality production, not
simply volume.
Oil will continue to be BP’s prime focus, and we aim to extend our extraordinary track
record in finding and developing new resources. We will keep making selective
investments in natural gas, with an emphasis on assets that generate good margins. And
we will be selective in the Downstream too, choosing to operate where our refining and
marketing assets are connected to attractive markets.
Over the past three years BP has had to change. Through our reorganization, we are
a simpler company. Through our asset sales, we are stronger financially. Through our
actions, we have reduced complexity and risk. Our plans, priorities and direction are clear.
I see great opportunities ahead, as we continue to build a stronger, safer BP that meets
the expectations of our shareholders and the wider world.
Carl-Henric Svanberg
Chairman
6 March 2013
Carl-Henric Svanberg at the Sangachal terminal
control room during his three-day trip to
Azerbaijan (top); Professor Dame Ann Dowling on
the Thunder Horse platform in the Gulf of Mexico
(middle); Brendan Nelson and Phuthuma Nhleko
at BP’s North America Gas operations in east
Texas, US (bottom).
Our strategy
For more on our strategic priorities and
longer-term objectives see pages 20-21.
Business review: Group overview
BP Annual Report and Form 20-F 2012
9
Business review: Group overview