Exxon Mobil chief Woods gets almost $37m in total pay 

Darren Woods was awarded almost 200 times the median pay for an Exxon worker

The oil major also recommended its investors vote against calls to cut executive pay incentives for greenhouse gas emission reductions, an additional pay report on gender and racial bias and an extra report on plastic pollution.

Exxon Mobil chief executive Darren Woods received $36.9m (€34m) in total pay last year, up nearly 3% from a year earlier, the oil major said in a regulatory filing. 

And in proxy filing ahead of its May annual meeting of shareholders, Exxon recommended its investors vote against all proposals submitted by a minority of shareholders.

These include calls to cut executive pay incentives for greenhouse gas emission reductions, an additional pay report on gender and racial bias and an extra report on plastic pollution. 

Exxon has successfully blocked proposals by activist investors after filing a complaint in court. Arjuna Capital and shareholder activist group Follow This dropped their proposal demanding tighter climate targets following the suit.

The US oil major says analysing each proposal can cost companies up to $150,000, and only less than 4% of the 140 proposals filed since 2014 have passed. 

CLIMATE & SUSTAINABILITY HUB

Woods was awarded almost 200 times the median pay for an Exxon worker, despite this increasing 8% last year to $185,376. Chevron chief Michael Wirth also saw total compensation increase, by 12.2%, to $26.5m in 2023, equal to about 150 times the $175,673 the average pay for the oil major's workers.

Part of a CEO's compensation is given by companies in equity, so the final value can only be known when options are exercised or stocks are sold. 

Other incentives for Mr Woods included $297,295 for setting up a new residential security system and another $485,758 for relocation after the closure of Exxon's office in Irving and its move to Spring, which are both in Texas. Three other top Exxon executives received about $1m in total to relocate to Spring. 

The pay hikes come even as profits from oil majors have fallen by about a third from record levels in 2022, as oil and gas prices retreated from a spike when Russia invaded Ukraine. Exxon ended 2023 with a profit of $36bn, versus $55.7bn it earned a year earlier. 

Reuters