Exxon, the Rockefellers, and climate change

I wrote several weeks ago about a shareholder revolt at Exxon led by Robert Monks and supported by the Rockefeller family.

A CEO/Board Chairman split at ExxonMobil won't make it green overnight, but the Rockefeller family statement suggests that ExxonMobil will be changing direction, and that direction is likely to be towards finding ways that ExxonMobil can adapt to a world that is trying to wean itself from oil.

That optimistic assessment just got a little more likely. Monday's Guardian had this to say:

A shareholder revolt at ExxonMobil led by the billionaire Rockefeller family has won the support of four significant British institutional investors who will call on Monday for a shakeup in the governance of the world's biggest oil company.

Guardian.co.uk has learned that F&C Asset Management, Morley Fund Management, the Co-Operative Insurance Society and the West Midlands Pension Fund are throwing their weight behind a resolution demanding that ExxonMobil appoints an independent chairman to stimulate debate on the company's board.

Exxon is facing a rebellion from its investors over its hardline approach to global warming. The firm has refused to follow rival oil companies in committing large-scale capital investment to environmentally friendly technology such as wind and solar power. (source)

The shareholder vote isn't binding, but the broader the support that the proposal receives, the more likely it is that the Exxon board will change its governance structure and, more importantly to me, begin to consider renewable energy sources more seriously. According to the Guardian, Exxon has committed more than $25 billion in capital investment to carbon-based fuel and only $100 million to (0.4% of the combined total) fund research on climate change.