New BP CEO turns down Markey’s request to testify — again

New BP CEO Robert Dudley has declined to testify — again — before a 
key House energy subcommittee, citing other commitments.



“As I am sure you can imagine, I have an enormous amount of work to do
 transitioning into this role and am very focused on ensuring the right 
decisions are made for the future of the company and the safety of our
 workforce,” Dudley wrote Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), chairman of the House
 Energy and Commerce Energy and Environment subpanel, in a Friday 
letter. “Therefore, I regret that I must decline your invitation at 
this time, but I look forward to sharing our progress with you on 
these important changes once they have been further developed and
 implemented.”



{mosads}Markey asked Dudley in an Oct. 1 letter to appear before the
 subcommittee in November or December, offering possible dates in those
 two months.



Dudley already had turned down an initial request to testify before 
Markey’s panel before he officially assumed the role as head of BP
 this month.



Markey quickly slammed Dudley’s second refusal to appear.



“The American people deserve answers from BP, but when it comes to
 appearing before Congress, one thing BP certainly does not stand for 
is ‘being present,’ ” Markey said. “If BP is truly committed to 
repairing their image and standing with the American people and 
government officials, Mr. Dudley can start by appearing before 
Congress.”



Markey noted that since BP leadership last appeared before Congress, on
 June 17, the company has released findings from its own internal probe 
into the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, announced an overhaul of its 
practices and installed Dudley as the new CEO.



In his letter to Markey on Friday, Dudley noted he took on his new 
role “just a few weeks ago” and has since “announced significant
 changes designed to strengthen safety and risk management.” Those include a new safety division that reports directly to Dudley 
and a revamping of the company’s handling of exploration, development and 
production.



“I, along with my entire leadership team, am looking carefully at all 
aspects of BP’s business to identify further ways to improve the way 
safety and risk are managed at BP, including the manner in which
 rigorous safety standards are applied within the company,” Dudley 
wrote.



The company has also “accepted all the recommendations of its internal 
investigation report and … begun to implement them across our
 drilling operations worldwide, including by reviewing how we manage 
the contractors who perform work for us in this area.”



Markey went after comments Dudley made Monday blaming the media 
for coverage of the spill.



Dudley told the Confederation of British Industry there was a media 
rush to judgment about the spill’s effects, according to several
 accounts of his speech.



“The American people were told that as CEO, Bob Dudley would change 
BP’s attitudes and practices,” Markey said. “Yet BP is continuing to 
point the finger at everyone but themselves. Since this disaster
 began, BP has stood for ‘blame passed.’ “