Exxon Mobil Corp. filed a lawsuit towards US and Dutch local weather activist traders in an effort to take away what it describes as their “excessive agenda” from the poll at its annual shareholder conferences.

The Texas oil large is searching for a declaratory judgment from the US District Court docket in Fort Value to exclude from its annual assembly this yr a proposal to speed up greenhouse-gas emission cuts submitted by Arjuna Capital LLC and the Amsterdam-based non-profit group Observe This.

Exxon argues {that a} judgment in its favor would tighten the Securities and Alternate Fee’s interpretation of the principles round what proposals get on proxy ballots throughout company America.

Publicly traded corporations usually debate the deserves of particular person proposals with the SEC, which might advise whether or not they be excluded from the poll. However critics of the method, together with Exxon, declare the SEC’s recommendation can range extensively relying which administration is in workplace. The variety of environmental and social proposals voted on has greater than doubled over the previous two proxy seasons, in keeping with the SEC.

Observe This and Arjuna Capital have “grow to be shareholders solely to marketing campaign for change via shareholder proposals which are calculated to decrease the corporate’s present enterprise,” Exxon mentioned within the grievance. They “are aided of their efforts by a flawed shareholder proposal and proxy voting course of that doesn’t serve traders’ pursuits and has grow to be ripe for abuse.”

Exxon’s resolution to hunt authorized judgment relatively than undergo the SEC is very uncommon and marks an aggressive pushback towards local weather activists who use shareholder voting to affect boardroom technique. It additionally comes because the US Supreme Court docket questions a longstanding authorized doctrine referred to as the “Chevron doctrine” that offers federal businesses vast latitude to interpret unclear mandates from Congress.

The lawsuit is a “exceptional step,” Observe This founder Mark van Baal mentioned in an announcement. “ExxonMobil clearly needs to forestall shareholders utilizing their rights. Apparently, the board fears shareholders will vote in favor of emissions reductions targets,” he mentioned.

Arjuna didn’t reply to a request for remark exterior of regular workplace hours.

Final month, Observe This and Arjuna submitted a proposal calling for a “additional accelerating” of Exxon’s emission discount plans that embrace Scope 3 emissions, in different phrases the air pollution from prospects burning the corporate’s oil and fuel. Chief Government Officer Darren Woods is a vocal critic of Scope 3 emissions accounting, saying it’s deceptive and doesn’t seize total emission-reduction efforts. An analogous proposal final yr gained simply over 10% of shareholder help, down from 27% in 2022.

“The 2024 Proposal doesn’t search to enhance ExxonMobil’s financial efficiency or create shareholder worth,” the corporate mentioned within the grievance. “Just like the earlier proposals, it’s designed as a substitute to serve Arjuna’s and Observe This’s agenda to “shrink” the very firm wherein they’re investing.”

Exxon is searching for to have the proposal excluded on two counts: that it interferes with the abnormal course of enterprise, and that shareholders have rejected related proposals a number of occasions. Exxon was one of many highest profile targets of the ESG motion, dropping a proxy battle towards first-time activist Engine No. 1 in 2021, which compelled it to interchange 1 / 4 of its board with new administrators. Engine No. 1 isn’t named within the grievance.

Exxon isn’t searching for financial reduction from the activist traders.

Proposals by Amsterdam-based non-profit Observe This and Massachusetts-based Arjuna Capital have grow to be a fixture on the ballots of Huge Oil’s annual conferences, principally encouraging oil majors to set greenhouse fuel emission targets that align with the Paris Settlement. Whereas most proposals have been rejected, help steadily rose from 2015 via 2021 earlier than dropping extra just lately.

Because the traders started their campaigns almost a decade in the past, all 5 Western oil majors have set bold emissions targets for 2050, with Shell Pfc and BP Plc taking heed of activists’ suggestions to scale back prospects’ emissions. Exxon has an ambition to grow to be internet zero by 2050 for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, in different phrases the air pollution from its manufacturing processes and the power it consumes. However the firm has rejected all targets related to air pollution precipitated by means of its oil and fuel.

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Matters
Lawsuits