Swiss investor Lombard Odier Investment Managers (LOIM) has pulled its investment out of Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC), citing its need to move away from funding projects that are counter to sustainability.
The company invested £11.25 million ($15.6 million) in BPC through a hedge fund and branded that move an “unintentional oversight”, as LOIM is seen as a sustainability leader, especially through its status as a certified B Corporation – corporations committed to thoughtful environmental practices – according to an article posted by website Responsible Investor.
The article explained that the B Corporation designation which LOIM has had since 2019, requires those designees to “meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose”.
BPC’s Chief Executive Officer Simon Potter, who is stepping down from this role and will serve as a non-executive director, said in a statement yesterday that LOIM’s injection provided capital for the safe completion of the Perseverance #1 test well, which was completed and capped three months ago. That well did not produce commercial quantities of oil.
Potter said in the statement that LOIM only temporarily owned shares in BPC and was not a “part of the project”, adding that the company’s future endeavors are not dependent on that investment.
“As far as BPC is aware, LOIM has already disposed of its entire interest in the company,” said Potter.
“BPC is not reliant on funding from LOIM for any part of its forward investment program in activities anywhere in its portfolio, spanning not only exploration in The Bahamas but onshore production, appraisal, development and exploration in Trinidad, an extended well test and subsequent production onshore in Suriname and exploration offshore in Uruguay.”
LOIM noted in a statement to Responsible Investor: “Lombard Odier is fully committed to investing for a more sustainable future. We have consistently and progressively been driving the integration of sustainability across our group investment strategies for several years and are aligning our business strategy and portfolios with the objectives of the Paris Agreement.”
Local and international environmentalists have long been against oil drilling in The Bahamas and continue to contend that the search for oil in this country is not worth the risk of a spill.
BPC announced this week that it is changing its name to Challenger Energy Group Plc. in order to better reflect its operations in other jurisdictions and will raise close to $10 million in equity.
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