BP has appointed a new chief executive, making Meg O’Neill the first woman to run a major global oil firm.

The London-based energy giant said its current boss Murray Auchincloss would step down less than two years after he replaced Bernard Looney, who was found to have committed “serious misconduct” in failing to disclose relationships with colleagues.

BP executive vice president Carol Howle will serve as interim chief executive until Ms O’Neill, who has led Australian energy firm Woodside Energy since 2021, takes up her new role on 1 April.

Ms O’Neill said she looks forward to helping BP “do our part to meet the world’s energy needs”.

Mr Auchincloss, who took over from Mr Looney in September 2024, said he had told BP’s chairman in September that he was open to stepping down “were an appropriate leader identified”.

“I am confident that BP is now well positioned for significant growth and I look forward to watching the company’s future progress,” he said after Ms O’Neill’s appointment was announced. He will serve in an advisory role until December 2026.

Ms O’Neill said she would prioritise re-establishing the oil giant’s market leadership, as well as advancing safety and driving innovation and sustainability.

BP praised Ms O’Neill’s time as chief executive of Woodside Energy, pointing to the firm’s takeover of BHP Petroleum International in 2022.

It said she had grown the business into the largest energy company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.

Before joining Woodside, Ms O’Neill spent 23 years in technical, operational and leadership positions at Texas-based energy firm ExxonMobil.

Mr Looney was dismissed without notice in 2023, and forfeited up to £32.4m ($43.3m) in salary and benefits, after admitting that he was not “fully transparent” about his past personal relationships.

BP’s board said they had been “knowingly misled” by Mr Looney.

At the time, Mr Looney said in a statement that he was “disappointed with the way this situation has been handled”.

Ms O’Neill’s appointment comes as BP is cutting its renewable energy investments and instead focusing on increasing oil and gas production.

In February, the energy giant said it would shift its strategy following pressure from some investors who were frustrated that its profits and share price had lagged behind rivals.

Rivals Shell and Norwegian company Equinor have also scaled back plans to invest in green energy and US President Donald Trump’s call to “drill baby drill” has encouraged firms to invest in fossil fuels.

The sudden departure of Mr Auchincloss comes only three months after the appointment of a new chair of the BP board, Albert Manifold.

Energy consultant and former Shell executive Robin Mills told the BBC’s Today programme that the “surprise” appointment of Ms O’Neill was about refocusing on its core oil and gas businesses.

“The new chairman, Albert Manifold, has really decided to put his stamp on things,” he said.

“I think the announcement that’s been put here made it very clear that he felt Murray [Auchincloss] had done a decent job, but not enough and more was needed and some new leadership, some new blood.”