ExxonMobil’s remade board of directors is debating whether to continue with several major oil and gas projects as the company reconsiders its investment strategy in a fast-changing energy landscape, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Members of the board—which includes three directors successfully nominated by an activist investor in May and two other new members—have expressed concerns about certain projects, including a $30 billion liquefied natural gas development in Mozambique and another multibillion-dollar gas project in Vietnam. Unknown is how this could impact the company’s Baton Rouge-area operations.
Exxon board members are weighing the fate of future projects as the company is facing pressure from investors to restrain fossil-fuel investment to limit carbon emissions and return more cash to shareholders. Environmentalists and some government officials are also pressuring the company to produce less oil and gas.
The discussions are taking place as part of a review of the oil company’s five-year spending plan, on which the board is set to vote at the end of this month. It isn’t clear whether the board will make a final call on the Mozambique or Vietnam projects during the current review. Read the full story.
