LONDON, March 31, 2026, 12:10 BST
BP’s global EV charging head is out, according to the Financial Times, with Rolls-Royce listing Martin Thomsen as a new arrival in March. The timing is notable: Meg O’Neill steps in as BP chief executive this week.
BP’s exit is notable, coming as the company dials back its low-carbon bets—scaling down renewables and EV charging to funnel more capital toward oil and gas, eyeing higher and quicker returns. The move is playing out as Brent crude hovered just below $115 a barrel on Tuesday, set for a record monthly surge after supply disruptions linked to the Iran conflict.
BP, which last year counted around 40,000 charging points, announced plans to trim its average yearly EV charging spend to under $500 million, narrowing its focus to four core markets: Britain, Germany, the U.S., and China. In March 2025, Reuters reported that Thomsen was tapped to lead BP Pulse, stepping in after Richard Bartlett’s departure.
Rolls-Royce named Thomsen group chief procurement and supply chain officer back in March. According to the company’s website, he previously headed up BP’s mobility and convenience segment across Europe, ran its global EV charging business, and oversaw bioethanol operations in Brazil.
BP tapped Woodside Energy’s Meg O’Neill for the CEO job in December, marking the first time an outsider will steer the company in over a hundred years—and putting a woman in charge of a top-five oil major for the first time. “Likely accelerates BP’s strategy reset,” said Maurizio Carulli, global energy analyst at Quilter Cheviot. JPMorgan’s Matthew Lofting added that investors are probably leaving an “open door” for a new take on strategy. Reuters
BP scrapped its share buyback program in February, took about $4 billion in charges tied to renewables and biogas, and steered more cash toward debt paydown and its oil and gas business. Net debt dropped to $22 billion, down from $26 billion the prior quarter. Shell and Exxon, according to Reuters, kept their buybacks going, while Equinor made cuts.
Executives are tightening the reins on spending. Gordon Birrell, BP’s executive vice president for production and operations, told Reuters last week the company stays “very disciplined” when choosing which projects to fund and their timing. According to Reuters, BP logged 12 discoveries in 2025—sites include Brazil, Egypt, and the U.S. Gulf. Reuters
The tone is set by an oil market swinging wildly. Brent, the main global benchmark, is tracking toward its steepest monthly gain ever. Lin Ye, Rystad Energy’s vice president for commodities markets and oil, cautioned that if the Strait of Hormuz stays shut for long, physical shortages could be next.
But there are risks to this reset. Swapping leaders again in EV charging threatens to unsettle an operation that manages thousands of charge points. And climate-focused investors have set an April 1 deadline for BP to put a shareholder resolution on the agenda for its annual meeting—or risk legal action.
BP maintains the proposal lacks legal standing. The company’s annual meeting lands on April 23, putting O’Neill in the position of stepping into a strategy overhaul—and right away, a shareholder spat.
