Antonio Brufau, the oldest president of the oil industry, will continue to work despite the previous promise to leave his position at Repsol SA.
Brufau was re-elected by a majority vote at the Madrid-based oil producer’s annual shareholder meeting on Thursday, giving him four more years overseeing a company that has undergone a radical transformation during his tenure. The exact number of shareholders who have supported it will be made public later.
Since his appointment in 2004, the former refining monopoly has fought off a takeover attempt, weathered the fallout from the nationalization of assets in South America and announced a major push into green energy.
Repsol said in 2019 that Brufau, 75, wanted the current four-year term to be his last. But widespread changes in the past 18 months among the company’s top ranks, including the departures of the head of upstream, the head of clean energy and the head of communications and regulation, prompted a rethink. With a much younger executive committee running the company, the board decided to recommend that Brufau stay on.
Brufau’s 18-year tenure makes him the third-longest chairman among the 37 publicly traded oil and gas companies that pump the equivalent of at least 100,000 barrels a day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Only the presidents of Russia’s Gazprom PJSC and Novatek PJSC, both major gas producers, have held their posts longer.
Highlights of Brufau’s tenure include the successful 2011 defense against an attempt by Spanish construction magnate Luis del Rivero and Mexican state oil producer Pemex to oust him and take control of Repsol.
Argentina’s 2012 nationalization of YPF SA was another setback for Brufau, who was executive chairman and CEO at the time. He had spent years trying to win over the leftist government in Buenos Aires, even agreeing to sell 25% of YPF to local businessmen. But in 2012 the State seized YPF and its Spanish management had to leave the country.
When Argentina compensated Repsol in 2014 for nationalization, Brufau used the funds to acquire a Canadian oil company and gain access to shale deposits in the US and oil sands resources in Canada.
After handing over the CEO role to Josu Jon Imaz in 2014, Brufau still played a major role in the company’s decision in 2019 to reduce the book value of its oil assets by 4.8 billion euros ($5.2 billion) , as he announced a stronger focus on the transition to clean energy and net zero emissions. Repsol was the first major oil company to announce such a move, although several of its larger peers have exceeded their initial commitments.
