Imperial Oil chief executive officer Brad Corson saw his pay double in 2022 to $17.34-million, making him the top-paid CEO among the major companies in the Canadian energy industry.
He also received a payout of $727,427 from a long-term bonus plan and $1.98-million in other compensation, including dividend payments on his stock awards, benefits including life insurance and a club membership, and expatriate assignment costs, since Mr. Corson, an employee of Imperial’s majority shareholder ExxonMobil, is on assignment in Calgary as CEO. The 61-year-old has worked for ExxonMobil for four decades.
ExxonMobil pays the cash costs of Imperial Oil’s executive compensation, such as salary bonus and pension. Imperial Oil issues shares to pay out stock compensation awards. “Formula-based performance assessments and compensation typically require emphasis on two or three business metrics,” Imperial explains to shareholders in its recently-filed proxy circular. “For the company to be an industry leader and effectively manage the technical complexity and integrated scope of its operations, senior executives must advance multiple strategies and objectives in parallel, versus emphasizing one or two at the expense of others that require equal attention.
Imperial Oil said its operating performance allowed it to take advantage of high commodity prices and post record earnings of $7.34-billion and cash flow of $10.5-billion. It raised its dividend by 63 per cent – the 28th consecutive year of increases – and said it bought back $6.4-billion of stock. Total shareholder return on the company’s stock in 2022, including dividends, was 47.8 per cent, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Only $17.3 million per year to destroy our Planet? What a deal...