BP logo at a petrol station in Taunton, Somerset, UK. (Photo: Anna Barclay)

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Shares in BP (LON: BP) slumped on Tuesday after the energy giant announced its board had removed chairman Albert Manifold in a shock move.

Following the announcement, BP shares plummeted by as much as 9% during early trading in London before mounting a partial recovery. At 7:24am EDT, BP’s shares were down 5.65% or 31.13p at 520.07p ($7.15) a share.

In a statement, BP said the departure was “effective immediately” over “serious concerns” related to governance standards, oversight and conduct, without elaborating. It marks another leadership upheaval at the energy giant.

BP is currently on its fourth CEO - Megan O’Neill - who took office in April. Manifold himself was appointed chairman as recently as September 2025, and took office the following month, after Helge Lund stepped down.

Manifold was deemed instrumental in O’Neill’s appointment as BP’s CEO following her widely lauded tenure as the CEO of Woodside Energy.

Amanda Blanc, senior independent director at BP, said: “Albert has helped bring a welcome focus and pace to bp’s transformation. However, the board has been surprised and disappointed to learn of governance oversight and conduct issues it deems unacceptable and has taken decisive action.”

The board also announced the appointment of Ian Tyler as interim chairman with immediate effect.

In a statement, Tyler said: “The Board and leadership team have deep conviction in the strategic direction we have laid out, and the company is moving at pace to deliver it.

“BP is building a track record of strong underlying operational performance and a tight focus on financial discipline – all in the pursuit of growing shareholder value and returns.”

Tyler added that the BP board has been “very impressed” with O’Neill since she joined as CEO.

"She has extensive industry and operational experience and real clarity about the direction and opportunity for the business. She has already taken bold action to simplify and strengthen the organization such as announcing the move to a clearly defined upstream/downstream model. Under her leadership we are building a simpler, stronger, more valuable BP.”

O’Neill’s appointment signalled BP’s desire to renew its focus on its core oil and gas operations. However, she has her work cut out with the company’s share price chronically underperforming compared to its peers to the point of having to fight off takeover rumors and an activist investor.

The market’s response to the latest boardroom upheaval at BP follows a more-than-doubling of profits in the wake of the Iran War and a spike in energy prices. Much of the profits flowed from its trading operations, while upstream oil and gas production was broadly flat.

However, the company announced a string of positive developments on the exploration and production front last year. Of particular significance was BP’s Bumerangue discovery in Brazil’s offshore Santos basin. The discovery carries the potential of about 8 billion barrels of oil equivalent.

Manifold was keenly pushing for an acceleration of upstream initiatives. Apart from the uncertainty, his shock departure raises serious questions over BP’s due diligence processes for selecting C-Suite executives and officers of the company. BP said it would begin the search for a permanent chair imminently.