Carol Howle, BP's deputy chief executive, is retiring less than three months after her promotion. She initially took on the role in April 2023 while also managing the trading division. Her retirement follows other leadership changes at BP, including the firing of chair Albert Manifold. Howle's position was understood to be temporary, and she is not leaving for another company but plans to travel. Sam Skerry will replace her as head of trading. BP's leadership has been rapidly changing, with recent departures raising concerns about stability within the company.

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BP deputy chief to leave company in latest upheaval at oil major

Carol Howle, the trading chief appointed deputy CEO less than three months ago, is set to retire

BP said it had long been agreed that Howle’s role as deputy chief executive would be temporary© RedNumberOne/Alamy

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Rachel Millard and Malcolm Moore in London

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BP’s deputy chief executive is retiring less than three months after she was promoted to the job, in the latest upheaval at the top of the oil and gas supermajor following the surprise firing of chair Albert Manifold in May.

Carol Howle took on the position in April this year alongside her role leading the company’s trading division, but will now leave the FTSE 100 company in the third quarter, according to BP.

She will be replaced as head of trading by Sam Skerry, BP’s head of mergers and acquisitions, who also previously ran oil trading in Europe.

Howle, 54, has steadily climbed BP’s ranks since joining its commercial team in London in 2000, and is highly regarded by colleagues and shareholders, serving as interim chief executive between December 2025 and this April.

BP said it had long been agreed that Howle’s role as deputy chief executive would be temporary, and that she was not departing for another company, but plans to travel.

BP did not publicly state Howle’s appointment was temporary, however, when it announced her elevation in April as incoming chief executive Meg O’Neill took the helm. According to the announcement in April Howle was to oversee the company’s “ongoing portfolio review and strategy development”.

Carol Howle© BP

Howle’s departure is likely to raise questions about rapid changes in the senior ranks at BP after Manifold, 63, was ousted in May following what the company said were “serious concerns” over his behaviour, which the FT has reported included allegations of bullying.

Manifold has denied allegations about his conduct and accused critics of lying and hiding behind anonymity.

O’Neill said in a statement on Tuesday that she thanked Howle for her” “outstanding commitment and contribution to BP”.

“Carol led the company through a critical transitional phase as interim and then deputy CEO. With her departure I have chosen not to replace the deputy CEO role. We have significant actions under way to streamline the organisational model and we have a focused leadership team in place.”

The company also announced that Kerry Dryburgh, executive vice-president of people and culture, would also be leaving, to be replaced by Sonya Adams, O’Neill’s current chief of staff.

Manifold’s removal followed the departure of his predecessor Helge Lund in October last year, which followed the dismissal of chief executive Bernard Looney in September 2023 after he misled the board over past relationships with colleagues.

Looney and Lund had put BP on course to cut its oil and gas output and push into renewables, but had to roll back the strategy to try and bolster its flagging share price, under pressure from investors including Elliott, the activist fund.

Manifold and the board hired O’Neill to continue that focus on operational performance and shareholder returns.

O’Neill announced in June a streamlined structure due to take effect from July, in which supply, trading and shipping — the division led until now by Howle — would continue to operate across two other main divisions. She made no mention of any change in role for Howle at the time.

Earlier this month BP said William Lin, the company’s head of its global gas and low-carbon energy business, would also depart in the third quarter.

This month, it was reported that Howle sold nearly £2mn worth of BP stock in May.

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