A trio of Democratic senators urged four major Marathon Petroleum shareholders to exert influence to shift the refining company’s climate change lobbying efforts.
The letters from Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), Brian Schatz (Hawaii) and Martin Heinrich (N.M.) to JPMorgan Chase, BlackRock, State Street and Vanguard cited Marathon’s push to thwart increasing vehicle fuel economy standards and an increase to caps on electric vehicle credits as misaligned with those investors’ stances on climate change.
“As an investor with a stated commitment to climate action and a stated concern about climate risk, Marathon’s pattern of repeatedly opposing efforts to limit carbon pollution should be doubly concerning,” the senators wrote in separate letters, which also sought what the companies “knew about Marathon’s political behavior” on climate.
In response, Marathon spokesman Jamal Kheiry said the company engages with shareholders “on a variety of topics they bring to us, and will continue doing so.” Kheiry added: “Our shareholders are aware of our efforts to diversify our portfolio, including our substantial investments in biofuels.”
Marathon Petroleum is a spinoff from Marathon Oil, a Houston-based exploration company active in Oklahoma’s STACK and SCOOP plays. It has facilities in Oklahoma.
The company operates refineries in 13 states, retail locations in 40 states and Mexico, and midstream operations that span over 15,000 miles.
Source: POLITICO’s Morning Energy Report
