In a statement provided at the request of CSP Daily News, [image-nocss] BP spokesperson Scott Dean said, "Last year, BP was involved in an accident that triggered a major oil spill and cost the lives of 11 men. BP is sorry for what happened. We deeply regret the loss of life, as well as the impact on the Gulf Coast community and the environment. BP has been steadfast in its commitment to restore the Gulf of Mexico region environmentally and economically. We are paying all legitimate claims and are fulfilling our obligations in the Gulf."
He added, "We are taking the lessons learned from the Deepwater Horizon accident deep into the fabric of our company and are resetting BP to further strengthen the way we manage risk and safety. BP is also sharing the lessons we have learned with the oil and gas industry and with regulators and government officials around the globe."
John Kleine, executive director of the BP Amoco Marketers Association (BPAMA), told CSP Daily News that distributors and marketers have emerged with a better relationship with BP corporate. "At last week's [BPAMA] board meeting, we reflected on the engagement with BP, and how the relationship has changed from a 'customer-supplier' relationship to one of being a valued strategic partner," he said.
The best example of that, he said, was the success of the "locally owned, locally operated" public-relations campaign. "It certainly had impact in the local communities, alleviating a lot of the pressures that came about with threats and boycotts."
And "BP recognized that local experience, local expertise really can make a difference not just for the consumer, but also for BP," he added. "It is playing out through the whole value chain."
He said that while customer sentiment is not what it was before the incident, "it is coming back.... Slower on the Gulf Coast, faster in the Midwest."
Another successful campaign was "Thank You Days." Across its entire network East of the Rockies, BP funded a $10 gift card for motorists making repeat visits. "It was oversubscribed," said Kleine.
BP, though its distributors, is also investing more in site safety--for example in relighting stations to make them brighter. It is also investing more in communities. It is making longer-term commitments to fund distributors for them to make contributions to charities and local organizations. "It's a long-term build in terms of customer sentiment, but it is clear that [BP] is reaching out and listening to the distributor," he said.
The oil company also funded a series of executive education offerings at Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management on the power of brands--it wasn't specifically about the BP brand, but strengthening any brand.
He added that with gasoline demand being down and fuel prices being up and the economy "in the throes of turmoil, "it is hard to tell what is more significant [to the consumer]--remembrance about the Gulf or today's pocketbook. The economy always seems to win out, but there certainly is sentiment around remembrance."
But undoubtedly, "there is a spotlight on BP," said Kleine. "Distributors say, 'It has been a year when people are watching us and are judging us by our actions'. That has been a true rallying cry or value statement."
He said that the distributors and marketers are watching BP just as the consumers are watching the them.
CEO Bob Dudley's came to the BPAMA convention in October and got a standing ovation for his comments to distributors that they "are the brand in the U.S." and thanking them for sharing their experiences and expertise and for "standing up for BP." Said Kleine: "That really went a long way in re-establishing the brand. he was quite forthright about it, and quite genuine."
Kleine also said that, in his opinion, reports about BP marketers switching brands because of the spill or consumer reaction to it were exaggerated. Switching for those reasons, he said, "was very limited. There hasn't been a groundswell, by any means, that I know of. And in this industry, there is always switching for one reason or another."He concluded, "There are a lot of reasons to be skeptical of BP, but there are these other reasons for distributors to be satisfied that BP is making a recovery."
Meanwhile, the Associated Press has put together this roundup of what has happened to key individuals and activities in the year since the spill:
BP Executives: Gaffe-prone CEO Tony Hayward was ousted from his job and replaced by American Bob Dudley, who took over the British company October 1. Hayward was transferred to a BP affiliate in Russia. Other top executives also left the company, including COO Doug Suttles, senior vice president Kent Wells and former head of exploration and production Andy Inglis.
Rig Families: Several families of the 11 men who died aboard the Deepwater Horizon are pressing legal claims against the companies involved. Transocean has settled with at least five families for as yet undisclosed amounts. BP has not settled with any, and many of the families say they have heard little to nothing from the company since the disaster.
Spill Claims: The $20 billion fund set up by BP to compensate victims has doled out only about $3.8 billion toapproximately 176,000 claimants, and oil spill victims complain of a slow, cumbersome process. Claims czar Ken Feinberg has said he only expects about half the fund to be needed to pay everyone. He said he is processing claims as fast as possible.
Litigation: More than 300 lawsuits filed against BP and the other companies involved with the rig were consolidated in federal court in New Orleans. A trial set for February 2012 will assign percentages of fault to BP and the other companies. Under the Oil Pollution Act, BP's liability for economic damages such as lost wages would be capped at $75 million. But BP has waived the cap and has already paid billions. Transocean is seeking to limit its damages. The April 20 anniversary is the deadline for people to file claims against Transocean for damages that may result from the trial.
Responders: As of last month, BP employees and contractors working the response totaledabout 2,000, according to Dean. There were 48,000 responders at the height of the spill. The Coast Guard still participates in the cleanup and recovery, but that has also been significantly reduced along with the amount of protective boom deployed in the water. Thad Allen, the retired Coast Guard admiral who was the Obama administration's point-person on the oil spill, is now a senior fellow at the Rand Corp.
Gulf Drilling: A deepwater drilling moratorium imposed after the disaster was lifted October 12, but no permits were approved until February 28. Operators must follow strict new rules and show they have the ability to contain a deepwater blowout.
The Gulf: An AP survey of researchers shows scientists rating the health of the Gulf as nearly back to normal a year after the spill; however, muting their optimism are significant declines in key health indicators such as the sea floor, dolphins and oysters. It will likely take years to assess the full environmental effects on the Gulf.
Investigations: A joint U.S. Coast Guard-Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Regulation & Enforcement investigative panel is expected to release preliminary findings in the coming days or weeks on the disaster's causes. BP and a presidentially appointed commission have released their own findings pointing to a cascade of technical and managerial failures. A government-sponsored investigation into the failure of the blowout preventer--a key device used to choke off deep sea spills--identified a design flaw that kept it from doing its job.
Anniversary: Transocean plans to fly relatives of the 11 dead to the disaster site on April 20. Space is limited to three people per family. The chopper will circle the site a few times and return to shore. Plans call for the families to then be flown from Louisiana to Houston for a private service. BP is not involved in that effort, though a spokesperson saidit is planning an event to mark the anniversary. Details have not been released.
(Click here for previous CSP Daily News coverage of the BP spill and its effect on retailing.)
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