BP CEO Dudley's pay package jumps 20% in 2015

BP's chief executive Bob Dudley saw his pay package jump 20% in 2015 to $19.6m (£13.9m) even though the company reported its worst annual loss in 20 years as oil prices slid.

In its annual report, the oil giant said Dudley’s pay rose from $16.4m in 2014. Excluding pension and retirement savings, however, this dropped slightly to $13.1m from $13.4m.

Dudley – whose sizeable pay package in tough times has been questioned at the company’s annual shareholder meetings – received a basic salary last year of nearly $1.9m and an annual cash bonus of nearly $1.4m.

Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg said in the report: “In 2015 Bob and his executive team have worked determinedly to steer the business through some difficult times with some tough decisions. They have met every challenge and as a result the business is in robust shape as we go into 2016. They deserve our thanks as do all our employees.”

Svanberg said 2015 had been another challenging year with oil prices down more than 50%, adding that the sustained low prices were a result of oversupply rather than a lack of demand.

He said the company’s work in reconfiguring BP following the incident in the Gulf of Mexico meant it was prepared and well-positioned to respond to the volatile environment as we move through 2016.

“The proposed consent decree with the United States federal government and settlements with the US Gulf states are an important step. It has enabled us to look at the future with greater confidence. However the current price environment continues to be a cause for concern and so we have set a financial path for the next two years. This medium-term strategy is based on optimising our deployment and allocation of capital and the continuing simplification of our business while maintaining our commitment to safety and reliability,” Svanberg said.

In February, BP posted a full year loss of $6.5bn, reflecting write-downs and restructuring charges as oil prices collapsed.