Albert Manifold, the ousted chair of the British energy giant BP, defended his tenure at the company and vowed to challenge the accusations surrounding his dismissal, adding more uncertainty to a company that has been rocked by executive turmoil in the past few years.
BP abruptly fired Mr. Manifold on Tuesday, saying “serious concerns” had been raised to the company’s board about his leadership, citing “governance oversight and conduct issues it deems unacceptable.”
The board named Ian Tyler, a director since last April, as interim chair, and said it would begin a process to find a permanent replacement. It did not provide details on Mr. Manifold’s exit.
In a statement on Tuesday, Mr. Manifold said he had been “removed without warning and without explanation.”
“I dispute entirely the characterization of my conduct, and I will not allow a false narrative to go unchallenged,” he said.
BP declined to comment on Mr. Manifold’s response to his firing. Mr. Manifold had not determined how he planned to fight his dismissal, said a person with knowledge of his thinking but was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
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