Brunswick Group

Background

Brunswick Group is an independent communications agency founded in 1987 by Sir Alan Parker.1โ€œBrunswick Group,โ€ World Economic Forum, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. It has worked for at least 52 clients in the fossil fuel industry. Brunswick Groupโ€™s fossil fuel clients in 2024 included Aramco (the worldโ€™s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitter2โ€œGreenwashing Files: Aramco,โ€ Client Earth, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/LpWXM)3โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed May 31, 2024. Archived May 31, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/BHfIx BP,4โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/I4W9w Eren Groupe (an energy company with coal projects in Turkey5โ€œEren Enerji,โ€ Global Energy Monitor, Accessed August 9, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/BJpca),6โ€œTIGI enters into a strategic partnership with Eren Groupe to meet growing demand for renewable heat solutions,โ€ PR Newswire, July 3, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Harbour Energy,7โ€œMedia Contact,โ€ Harbour Energy, Accessed May 15, 2024. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Rp7Q3 Kosmos Energy,8โ€œKosmos Energy Ltd.,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Vitol (the worldโ€™s biggest oil trader9Julia Payne. โ€œVitol to acquire Asian energy trader Noble Resources,โ€ Reuters, August 2, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.),10โ€œVitol acquires US-based biomethane company,โ€ Vitol, April 17, 2024. Archived May 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/PWskA  ContourGlobal (a British power generation company),11โ€œContact Us,โ€ ContourGlobal, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/pBiER National Grid (a British utilities company),12โ€œPre-Close Update ahead of 2023/24 Full Yr Results.,โ€ National Grid PLC, November 10, 2022. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/tvnBq mining companies Anglo American13โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/I4W9w and BHP Group14โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/I4W9w (two of the worldโ€™s biggest coal producers15โ€œList of largest coal mining companies,โ€ Wikipedia, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/inkne), and Teck Resources,16โ€œTom Pigott,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/clg0H another company that mines coal. Brunswick Group began working for BP in 2010, when it was brought on to manage BPโ€™s response to the Deepwater Horizon disaster, an explosion on an oil rig causing eleven deaths and the largest marine oil spill in history.17Richard Pallardy, โ€œDeepwater Horizon oil spill,โ€ Britannica, last updated April 27, 2024. Archived May 14, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Other major fossil fuel clients have included Enron,18Julia Hood. โ€œRole of PR grows as Enron tries to repair and rebuild,โ€ PR Week, July 1, 2002. Archived June 13, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Sinopec,19โ€œ2020 SABRE Awards Asia-Pacific Winners,โ€ PRovoke Media, 2020. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lP1ed Shell,20โ€œPaul Raeburn,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/XeMqW Chevron,21โ€œDavid Ashton,โ€ The Org, Accessed June 10, 2024. Archived June 10, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/KzKEE Puma Energy,22โ€œAnnual Report 2017,โ€ Puma Energy, 2017. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Glencore,23โ€œClimate Report 2021,โ€ Glencore, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and U.S. pipeline company Energy Transfer Partners,24โ€œEnergy Transfer confirms terms of Williams proposal,โ€ Energy Transfer, July 7, 2015. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/vdiyO,25โ€œEnergy Transfer Equity announces Chancery Court decision in litigation with the Williams Companies,โ€ Energy Transfer, June 24, 2016. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/jpwTJ which is estimated to have had a pipeline leak on average every 11 days between 2002 and 2017, releasing 3.6 million gallons of hazardous liquids.26Sharon Kelly. โ€œFor 15 Years, Energy Transfer Partners Pipelines Leaked an Average of Once Every 11 Days: Report,โ€ DeSmog, April 17, 2028.

Brunswick Group is headquartered in the UK,27โ€œBrunswick Group,โ€ World Economic Forum, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and was ranked second in trade publication PR Weekโ€™s 2025 โ€œTop 150 PR Agencies in London and the UK.โ€28โ€œUK Top 150 Consultancies table 2025,โ€ PR Week, May 6, 2025. Archived December 8, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Brunswick Group also has a large international presence with more than 15 offices worldwide,29โ€œBrunswick Group,โ€ World Economic Forum, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. with the U.S. as its largest market in 2023.30Alex Brummer, โ€œLabour’s Sir Keir Starmer cosies up to top City spin doctors,โ€ This is Money, November 18, 2023. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/MKWBA

Brunswick Groupโ€™s speciality is financial PR, and it advises on crisis management, communications for mergers and acquisitions, regulatory issues, media and investor relations, and corporate campaigns.31โ€œBrunswick Group,โ€ World Economic Forum, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. This includes helping companies to articulate their โ€œpurposeโ€ and advising companies on climate change.32โ€œGroup Companies,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed August 3, 2024. Archived August 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/3Wp3G

Brunswick Group also works for clients in other polluting sectors, including steel,33Robert Gray. โ€œTOP 150 PR CONSULTANCIES: Brunswick โ€“ Bashful but still bullish,โ€ PR Week, April 24, 2008. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. cement,34Saeed Shah. โ€œBlue Circle defence against Lafarge cost £27m,โ€ Independent, September 12, 2000. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/eXk6k agrichemicals,35โ€œChemChina cash offer to acquire Syngenta at a value of over US$ 43 billion,โ€ Syngenta, February 3, 2016. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/UYul9 aviation,36Rebecca Pardon. โ€œCORPORATE & FINANCIAL AWARDS 2023 WINNERS ANNOUNCED,โ€ Communicate Magazine, November 15, 2023. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and fast fashion.37Charlie Conchie. โ€œWhy the prospect of a Shein listing is dividing the City of London,โ€ City A.M., May 22, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/72nXg

Brunswick Group has also worked with the tobacco38David Quainton. โ€œBrunswick helps Altadis ahead of bidding battle,โ€ PR Week, March 28, 2007. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and alcohol industries,39โ€œDiageo launches Unmind mental health app to all employees worldwide for World Mental Health Day,โ€ Diageo, October 10, 2022. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. the gambling industry,40Alec Mattinson. โ€œWilliam Hill puts its Brunswick financial comms account out to pitch,โ€ PR Week, June 3, 2009. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on flle at DeSmog. and has had clients in the media sector such as Thomson Reuters.41โ€œ77. Alan Parker,โ€ The Guardian, July 14, 2008. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/abxzj Brunswick Group has also worked for British spy company Hakluyt.42Paul D. Thacker. โ€œThe Brunswick Group: Another PR Firm Spinning Fossil Fuel Messaging Emerges From the Shadows,โ€ The DisInformation Chronicle, October 24, 2022. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Zf8Xd Hakluyt attracted controversy in 2001 when the Sunday Times wrote that Hakluyt employed staff to infiltrate environmental groups when working for BP and Royal Dutch Shell.43โ€œHAKLUYT corporate grouping,โ€ OpenCorporates, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Brunswick Group maintains a large number of influential connections. Sir Alan Parker has personal friendships with political leaders from both the Conservative and Labour parties, and there is a โ€˜revolving doorโ€™ between Brunswick Group employees and senior roles in politics, the media, and the fossil fuel industry (see Key People below). Brunswick Group also has close ties with academia; it works for Stanford University,44Owen Davis, โ€œStanford sustainability schoolโ€™s partner sparks controversy,โ€ Blog Herald, July 9, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/G3ETy sits on the Harvard Roundtable on Corporate Governance,45โ€œCorporate Governance Roundtable,โ€ Harvard Law School, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/4LzzH and donates to the Columbia Journalism School.46โ€œSupported charities,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed July 29, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Additionally, Wolfgang Blau, the Managing Partner of Brunswick’s global climate hub, is a co-founder of the Oxford Climate Journalism Network at Oxford University, and was a Visiting Fellow of the University of Pennsylvaniaโ€™s Perry World House in 2023.47โ€œWolfgang Blau,โ€ Brunswick Group, December 30, 2022. Archived December 30, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.is/h0NKa,48โ€œEvents,โ€ Perry World House, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/KPD7N

Race to Zero and other climate advisory work

In December 2022, openDemocracy revealed that Brunswick Group had been simultaneously working for fossil fuel clients such as BP and Aramco as well as for the UN โ€œhigh-level climate championsโ€ on the โ€œRace to Zeroโ€ campaign, which encourages businesses to act on climate change.49Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw

Brunswick partner Phil Drew, who had become a special adviser to the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions, led Brunswick Groupโ€™s work for the climate champions. In 2017, Drew worked for BP on a campaign to promote natural gas.50Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw Another Brunswick Group partner, Wolfgang Blau, has been an advisor to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change since at least 2022.51โ€œWolfgang Blau,โ€ Brunswick Group, December 30, 2022. Archived December 30, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.is/h0NKa

According to the UN, Brunswick Group joined Race to Zero itself in 2020.52โ€œCities, Regions and Businesses Race to Zero Emissions,โ€ United Nations Climate Change, June 5, 2020. Archived June 19, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. As of December 2025, Brunswick Groupโ€™s website says: โ€œSince publicly signing up to the UN Business Ambition for 1.5ยฐC and the UN Race to Zero in June 2020, we have worked to understand our carbon footprint as a firm.โ€53โ€œBrunswickโ€™s Climate Commitment,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 8, 2025. Archived December 8, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/S6TwF Brunswick Group was not listed as a Race to Zero member on either the Race to Zero website or the Global Climate Action Portal, as of December 2025.54โ€œWhoโ€™s in?,โ€ Race to Zero, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Accessed December 15, 2025. Archived December 15, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,55โ€œGlobal Climate Action Portal – Brunswick Group,โ€ Global Climate Action, Accessed December 15, 2025. Archived December 15, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Brunswick Group has also advised the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (known as both UNPRI and PRI),56โ€œAmelia Pan,โ€ PJT Partners, Accessed August 9, 2024. Archived Accessed August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/qkHEi,57โ€œMajor new policy forecast commissioned by PRI shows rapid policy acceleration by 2025 would bring โ€˜below 2Cโ€™ Paris Agreement within reach,โ€ PRI, October 18, 2021. Archived August 9, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. a United Nations-supported international network of financial institutions working to promote sustainable investment through the incorporation of environmental, social, and governance principles,58โ€œAbout the PRI,โ€ PRI, Accessed August 9, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/chmG6 and the UN-accredited59โ€œAbout Us,โ€ World Energy Council, Accessed August 9, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/rgF4h World Energy Council,60(see environmental clients table below) a think tank backed by government and industry.61Matthew Green and Merel de Buck. โ€œNew Shell Files Could Aid Climate Cases, Attorneys Say,โ€ DeSmog. January 17, 2024.

In addition, Brunswick Group has worked for the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD),62โ€œAmelia Pan,โ€ PJT Partners, Accessed August 9, 2024. Archived Accessed August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/qkHEi a group established by the G20 and the Financial Stability Board to provide investors with information on what companies are doing to mitigate the risks of climate change.63โ€œTask Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures,โ€ Wikipedia, Accessed August 9, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/me0sX

Fossil fuel interests in developing countries

Brunswick Group has worked for at least eight smaller oil and gas and mining companies that focus on developing assets in developing countries (New Age, Bowleven, London Mining PLC, Salamander Energy, Ophir Energy, Kosmos Energy, Zhaikmunai [now Nostrum], and Trinity Exploration and Production).64See the fossil fuel clients table below. Several of these are listed on the Alternative Investment Market, which has a record of attracting small oil, gas, and mining companies, and has been criticized for weak regulation.65Chloe Farand. โ€œTaking AIM: Londonโ€™s Wild West Stock Market,โ€ DeSmog, May 9, 2018. Several of the companies that Brunswick Group has worked for have been involved in controversy. New Age, London Mining plc, Seven Energy, and Kosmos Energy have all been charged with or accused of corrupt practices,66โ€œOch-Ziff Hedge Fund Settles FCPA Charges,โ€ SEC, September 29, 2016. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/JtWeI,67โ€œLondon Mining Plc,โ€ Serious Fraud Office, September 11, 2023. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/AKCFw,68Chloe Farand. โ€œโ€˜Black Goldโ€™: Mapping Londonโ€™s African Oil Hub,โ€ DeSmog, May 9, 2018.,โ€œTransparency International calls for foreign bribery investigations into Senegalโ€™s lucrative oil deals,โ€ Transparency International, December 2, 2021. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/TuLoU and Bowleven has experienced ongoing struggles regarding its management69โ€œFive directors ousted at oil and gas explorer Bowleven,โ€ BBC News, March 15, 2017. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/6wo3D and finances.70โ€œCash-strapped Bowleven shares crash as uncertainty around their sole asset continues,โ€ UK Investor Magazine, September 26, 2023. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/2VrGt

Brunswick Group also represents large companies with controversial interests in developing countries. For example, Vitol, which Brunswick has worked with periodically since at least 2010, has been involved in several major scandals.71Brian O’Keefe with Doris Burke. โ€œThe unseen hand that moves the world’s oil,โ€ Fortune Magazine, February 18, 2013. Archive on file at DeSmog.,72Polly Curtis and Terry Macalister. โ€œGovernment admits Alan Duncan’s links to company in ‘Libyan oil cell’,โ€ The Guardian, September 1, 2011. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/JVLg4,73Jim Armitage. โ€œNew scandal threatens world’s largest oil trader Vitol and boss Ian Taylor,โ€ The Independent, September 29, 2016. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/q75Bu

Brunswick Group is a member of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC),74โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ CWEIC, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/u6IUr a membership organization that seeks to facilitate trade and investment throughout the 56 Commonwealth member nations,75โ€œWho We Are,โ€ CWEIC, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/neo9Y alongside its longstanding client BP.76See the โ€˜fossil fuel clientsโ€™ table below. Brunswick Group attended the 2020 UK-Africa Investment Summit, alongside its clients Anglo American, BP, Cairn, and New Age,77โ€œGraham Stuart MP to Caroline Lucas MP,โ€ Data.parliament.uk, February 12, 2020. Archived July 29,. 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. has lobbied the EU regarding gas investment in Africa,78โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and supports an African mining investment event.79โ€œEvents Newswire: Mining Indaba launches โ€˜Leaders of Tomorrowโ€™ competition,โ€ Mining IR, December 11, 2018. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ZZKiR,80โ€œ2024 Partners,โ€ Mining Indaba, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. It has also represented organizations working on the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative, which some critics say distracts from the need to decarbonize.81Ashoka Mukpo, โ€œCan carbon markets solve Africaโ€™s climate finance woes?,โ€ Mongabay, November 7, 2023. Archived June 18, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/M5W9J  

Brunswick Arts

Brunswick Group has a division, Brunswick Arts, which has the dual purpose of promoting the interests of arts, cultural and charitable organizations and helping businesses to โ€œmake the most of working with arts and culture โ€“ maximizing sponsorships, developing arts prizes, creating cultural strategies, and advising foundations.โ€82โ€œGroup Companies,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed August 3, 2024. Archived August 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/3Wp3G

In 2025, DeSmog revealed how Sadlerโ€™s Wells, a top-performing arts theatre, hired Brunswick Group to help it craft its corporate messaging strategy amid growing protests urging it to cut ties with its sponsor, Barclays. This investigation was based on Freedom of Information requests filed by campaign group Culture Unstained and shared with DeSmog. The emails obtained showed how Brunswick drafted a letter published in May 2025 in the Financial Times defending corporate sponsorships of the arts, signed by Sadlerโ€™s Wells and 10 other leading cultural institutions.83Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025.

Brunswick has worked with at least five of the institutions that signed the letter (including Sadlerโ€™s Wells) and has also counted the cultural sponsors Barclays, BP, and Shell among its clients. Senior staff at Brunswick also have a network of ties to the arts industry. For example, at least three Brunswick Group executives have held board positions at institutions that signed the letter to the Financial Times.84Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025.85

Stance on Climate Change

Brunswick Groupโ€™s Vice Chairman and former chief executive, Neal Wolin, has said the company wants โ€œto be part of the solutionโ€ to climate change.86โ€œBrunswickโ€™s Climate Commitment,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 19, 2024. Archived June 19, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/S6TwF Brunswick Group has said that it will achieve this through two methods: โ€œFirst, cutting our own operational emissions. Second, helping our clients succeed in the net[-]zero economy.โ€87โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

In 2022, a Brunswick Group spokesperson told PR Week that it advises its clients โ€œon what is expected of them on climate change by financial, political and societal stakeholders, and the actions they can take to build trust.”88Elizabeth Wiredu. โ€œBrunswick accused of hypocrisy over fossil-fuel clients,โ€ PR Week, December 7, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Brunswick has a dedicated โ€œclimate hub.โ€89โ€œDavid Wei joins Brunswick Group as a Partner,โ€ Brunswick Group, June 10, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/bMrAy

According to its website, Brunswick has set short- and medium-term targets to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which the Science Based Targets initiative, a global body that enables businesses to set net-zero targets, has approved.90โ€œBrunswickโ€™s Climate Commitment,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 19, 2024. Archived June 19, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/S6TwF Compared to 2022, Brunswick Group has increased the ambition of its pledge to reduce scope 1 and 2 emissions (emissions under its direct control and from its purchased energy), with its pledge as of 2025 committing to reducing these emissions by 38.8% by 2028,91โ€œBrunswickโ€™s Climate Commitment,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 8, 2025. Archived December 8, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VdFak compared to its 2022 promise of a 37.8% reduction.92โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. However, there has been backsliding on its scope 3 emissions pledge (the emissions Brunswick is indirectly responsible for in its value chain). In 2022, the pledge was to reduce scope 3 emissions by 54.6% per employee by 2028.93โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The target as of 2024 is to reduce scope 3 GHG emissions by 54.6% from travel per employee by 2028.94โ€œBrunswickโ€™s Climate Commitment,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 8, 2025. Archived December 8, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VdFak  This means that Brunswick Groupโ€™s commitment does not cover scope 3 emissions, purchased goods and services, and waste, all of which account for 44% of Brunswickโ€™s emissions in 2022.95โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,96โ€œBrunswickโ€™s Climate Commitment,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 19, 2024. Archived June 19, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/S6TwF

Brunswick Group posts blog-post type articles about the oil and gas industry on its website,97โ€œRaising the bar on climate ambitions: themes from the IOCโ€™s Q4 results,โ€ Brunswick Group, February 20, 2020. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/Mp4Ms,98โ€œConsolidation in the US upstream fuels questions on portfolio optimization,โ€ Brunswick Group, April 8, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/CRSpu includes articles discussing sustainability in its magazine, the Brunswick Review,99โ€œTaking on nature loss at scale,โ€ Brunswick Review, 2023. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,100Tong Zhao and Crystal Chan. โ€œPlastic Snow,โ€ The Brunswick Review, March 10, 2014. Archived March 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and participates in events relating to sustainability and the energy transition.101โ€œ2024 agenda,โ€ Economist Impact, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/jZVem,102โ€œKey Takeaways from CERAWeek 2024,โ€ Brunswick Group, March 31, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/YQIvu In a self-promotional video by Brunswick Group, partner Phil Drew says that the firm is at โ€œthe very core of the global climate effort.”103โ€œClimate Hub,โ€ Brunswick Group. Archived June 21, 2024. Archived Video on file at DeSmog. However, Duncan Meisel, executive director of Clean Creatives, a group that encourages creatives to cut ties with the fossil fuel industry, told the Guardian newspaper in 2024: โ€œI think you can make the case that Brunswickโ€™s speciality is in greenwashing,โ€ because โ€œThey helped BP to greenwash gas โ€ฆ and their other client Saudi Aramcoโ€™s biggest talking point is that they produce the greenest oil in the world.โ€104Dharna Noor. โ€œStanford disappoints critics of fossil fuel donations by hiring PR firm with big oil ties,โ€ The Guardian, June 17, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/snNqg

Funding

In 2022, Brunswick Groupโ€™s global revenue was ยฃ390.9 million, with an underlying operating profit of ยฃ59.6 million.105John Harrington. โ€œBrunswick: New income streams boost FY revenue,โ€ PR Week, August 15, 2023. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. In 2023, This is Money, which provides financial and business news, reported that the U.S. was Brunswickโ€™s largest market, with revenues of ยฃ197 million, followed by the UK with ยฃ114 million.106Alex Brummer, โ€œLabour’s Sir Keir Starmer cosies up to top City spin doctors,โ€ This is Money, November 18, 2023. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/MKWBA

Donations

Brunswick Group previously listed on its website various charities that was supporting. This included Columbia Journalism School, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and the Knight Bagehot Program (a fellowship in economics and business journalism).107โ€œSupported charities,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed July 29, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Brunswick Group donated between ยฃ50,000 and ยฃ99,999 to Chatham House, a UK think tank, in the 2021-2022 financial year (the last year that Chatham House reported on its donors). Chatham House also accepts funding from numerous fossil fuel companies.108โ€œDonors to Chatham House,โ€ Chatham House, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Lobbying expenditure

In 2023, Brunswick spent 2,395,000 Euros on lobbying the EU, employed 21 EU lobbyists (7.2 Full Time Equivalent), and attended 38 high-level commission meetings.109โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Source: LobbyFacts.110โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Key People

Role202520242023202220212020Citation
Alan ParkerFounder and ChairmanYYYYYY111โ€œSir Alan Parker, CVO,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/N7YTq 
Louise CharltonCo-Founder and Vice-ChairmanYYYYYY112โ€œLouise Charlton,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archive URL:https://archive.ph/dJxPG 
Neal WolinVice Chairman (CEO until 2024)YYYYYY113โ€œNeal Wolin,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/9vmQI,114โ€œNeal Wolin,โ€ LinkedIn, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
Henry TimmsCEOYY115โ€œHenry Timms,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archive URL:https://archive.ph/AK2Wn
Nik DeogunCEO of the Americas and US Senior PartnerYYYYYY116โ€œNikhil โ€œNikโ€ Deogun,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archive URL:https://archive.ph/ELrIq,117โ€œNikhil Deogun,โ€ LinkedIn, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Brunswick Group is led by a global network of 220 partners.118โ€œOur Experts,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed December 10, 2025. Archived December 10, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/9wMLX 

Clients

Fossil Fuel and Other Energy Industry Clients

YearCountryRegionClientSubsidiaryCampaignIncome, if availableCitation
2024Anglo American119โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/I4W9w
2024Aramco120โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed May 31, 2024. Archived May 31, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/BHfIx
2024BHP Group121โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/I4W9w
2024BP122โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/I4W9w
2024ContourGlobal123โ€œContact Us,โ€ ContourGlobal, Accessed August 5, 2024. Archived August 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/pBiER
2024Enviva124โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed May 31, 2024. Archived May 31, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/BHfIx
2024Eren Groupe125โ€œTIGI enters into a strategic partnership with Eren Groupe to meet growing demand for renewable heat solutions,โ€ PR Newswire, July 3, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2024Harbour Energy126โ€œMedia Contact,โ€ Harbour Energy, Accessed May 15, 2024. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Rp7Q3
2024Kosmos Energy LtdEU lobbying127โ€œKosmos Energy Ltd.,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2024UKEuropeNational Grid128โ€œPre-Close Update ahead of 2023/24 Full Yr Results.,โ€ National Grid PLC, November 10, 2022. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/tvnBq
2024Teck Resources129โ€œTom Pigott,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/clg0H
2024Vitol130โ€œVitol acquires US-based biomethane company,โ€ Vitol, April 17, 2024. Archived May 28, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2023Anglo American131โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2023. Archived December 10, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/X3b9j
2023Aramco132โ€œSaudi Aramco completed the acquisition of a 10% stake in Rongsheng Petrochemical for CNY24.6bn.,โ€ Merger Links, March 27, 2023. Archived June 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/LPrdb,133โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group. Archived April 26, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2023BHP Group134โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2023. Archived December 10, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/X3b9j
2023BP135โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2023. Archived December 10, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/X3b9j
2023Capricorn Energy (previously Cairn Energy)136โ€œUpdate on the NewMed transaction and Strategic Review,โ€ Capricorn Energy, February 15, 2023. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/QATvq
2023ContourGlobal137โ€œContact Us,โ€ ContourGlobal, December 20, 2023. Archived December 20, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2023Enviva138โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group. Archived April 26, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2023Eren Groupe139โ€œEREN sells its renewable energy subsidiary and accelerates its development,โ€ Eren Groupe, July 25, 2023. Archived December 12, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/3y7vi
2023Harbour Energy140โ€œHarbour Energy 2023 full-year results,โ€ Harbour Energy, 2024. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/1J1Ds
2023Kosmos Energy LtdLobbying the EU on gas investment in Africa141โ€œKosmos Energy Ltd.,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2023Lightsource BPLobbying the EU on the EU Net-Zero Industry Act142โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2023UKEuropeNational Grid143โ€œRecord network investment: a new phase of capital delivery,โ€ National Grid, November 9, 2023. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2023Viking CCS Project144โ€œHarbour Energy and bp agree to develop the Viking CCS project,โ€ Viking CCS, Accessed June 4, 2024. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/rcyEF,145โ€œHarbour Energy and bp agree to develop the Viking CCS project,โ€ BP, April 11, 2023. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/fy2gj
2023Vitol146โ€œVitol-owned Petrol Ofisi agrees to purchase BPโ€™s Turkish fuel operations,โ€ Vitol, November 16, 2023. Archived December 12, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/cp2eL
2022Anglo American147โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2022. Archived December 1, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.is/SqrGX
2022Arabian DrillingPR for IPO148Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw,149โ€œAnnouncement of the Final Offer Price for the IPO of Arabian Drilling,โ€ Arabian Drilling Company, October 11, 2022. Archived May 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022Aramco150Elizabeth Wiredu. โ€œBrunswick accused of hypocrisy over fossil-fuel clients,โ€ PR Week, December 7, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,151โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group. Archived April 26, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022BHP Group152โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2022. Archived December 1, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.is/SqrGX
2022BP153Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw
2022Capricorn Energy (previously Cairn Energy)154โ€œHalf-yearly Results 2022,โ€ Capricorn Energy, September 6, 2022. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Dk1qL
2022ContourGlobal155โ€œKKR & Co completed the acquisition of ContourGlobal for $2.14bn.,โ€ Merger Links, May 17, 2022. Archived December 15, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/CRY9u
2022Enviva156โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group. Archived May 31, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022Eren Groupe157โ€œEren Groupe becomes a shareholder of BeeBryte,โ€ BeeBryte, July 20, 2022. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/xcQGH
2022Harbour Energy158Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw
2022Kosmos Energy Ltd159โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Archived December 7, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022MarafiqPR for IPO160Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw
2022UKEuropeNational Grid161โ€œNATIONAL GRID 2022/23 HALF YEAR RESULTS STATEMENT,โ€ National Grid PLC, November 10, 2022. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022Nord Stream 2162Daniel Thomas. โ€œPublic relations firms cut Russia ties amid reputational fears,โ€ Financial Times, March, 2022. Archived March 2, 2022. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022SUEZ163โ€œSuez Maximising the value created in a deal,โ€ Brunswick Group, January 4, 2022. Archived June 7, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Zyzo0
2022ValeroUK lobbying164โ€œBrunswick Group Advisory Ltd,โ€ Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, Accessed August 12, 2024. Archived August 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022Viking CCS Project165โ€œViking CCS pipeline Non-Statutory Consultation Report,โ€ Viking CCS, November 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2022Vitol166โ€œVitolโ€™s bunker barges deliver bio-fuel blended VLSFO to shipping clients in Singapore,โ€ Vitol, March 17, 2022. Archived May 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/G6qqR
2021Anglo American167โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2021. Archived June 14, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.is/2SPgZ
2021Aramco168Paolo Scalera. โ€œMotoGP, The Prince and Valentino: the golden sand of VR46,โ€ GPOne, June 28, 2021. Archived June 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7f0yO,169โ€œPatrick Handley,โ€ Brunswick Group. Archived November 22, 2021. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2021BHP Group170โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2021. Archived June 14, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.is/2SPgZ
2021Capricorn Energy (previously Cairn Energy)171โ€œChange of Company Name,โ€ Capricorn Energy, December 13, 2021. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/dzddM
2021ChrysaorPR support for merger with Premier Oil plc and formation of Harbour Energy plc172โ€œChrysaor Holdings Limited completed the acquisition of Premier Oil plc in a reverse merger transaction,โ€ Market Screener, March 30, 2021. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lRmT6
2021ContourGlobal173โ€œAppointment of new head of investor relations,โ€ ContourGlobal, October 18, 2021. Archived August 9, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2021GlencoreMerchantCantos174โ€œClimate Report 2021,โ€ Glencore, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2021Harbour Energy175โ€œHarbour Energy to be admitted to trading,โ€ Harbour Energy, April 1, 2021. Archived May 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/vg5tr
2021Nord Stream 2176โ€œBrunswick,โ€ Best in Brussels, 2021. Archived June 7, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2021Puma EnergyMerchantCantos177โ€œAnnual Report 2021,โ€ Puma Energy, 2021. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2021SUEZ178โ€œBrunswick,โ€ Best in Brussels, 2021. Archived June 7, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2021Viking CCS Project179โ€œViking CCS pipeline Non-Statutory Consultation Report,โ€ Viking CCS, November 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2021Vitol180โ€œVitol launches global bunkering service,โ€ Vitol, May 25, 2021. Archived May 28, 2024. Archie URL: https://archive.ph/P1pb1
2020Anglo American181โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2020. Archived September 27, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/HPVQ9
2020Aramco182โ€œUnderstanding shareholder base and how to develop your IR communication strategy,โ€ LSEG, October 16, 2020. Archived June 3, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,183โ€œAramco completes its acquisition of a 70% stake in SABIC from the Public Investment Fund (PIF),โ€ Aramco, June 17, 2020. Archived June 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/59OBV
2020BHP Group184โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2020. Archived September 27, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/HPVQ9
2020BPBP Emissions Technology Showcase185โ€œ2020 SABRE EMEA finalists,โ€ PRovoke Media, 2020. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/dfSXa
2020Cairn Energy (now Capricorn Energy)186โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2020. Archived September 27, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/HPVQ9
2020Chrysaor187โ€œUpdate on proposed merger with Chrysaor and change of name,โ€ Harbour Energy, December 16, 2020. Archived March 21, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2020ContourGlobal188โ€œContourGlobal plc trading update,โ€ ContourGlobal, May 15, 2020. Archived August 9, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2020EnvivaEU and UK lobbying189โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed July 28, 2024. Archived July 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/itjoE,190โ€œBrunswick Group Advisory Ltd,โ€ Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, Accessed August 12, 2024. Archived August 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2020GlencoreMerchantCantos191โ€œ2020 Climate Report,โ€ Glencore, 2020. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2020New Age192โ€œNew Age (African Global Energy) Ltd,โ€ New Age, 2020. Archived January 27, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/1JdYj
2020Nord Stream 2193โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Archived December 8, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/8fr9d
2020Sinopec194โ€œ2020 SABRE Awards Asia-Pacific Winners,โ€ PRovoke Media, 2020. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lP1ed
2019Aramco195Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw
2019BPUpstream communication campaign: Gas and methane$350,000196โ€œBPA_HCOR_00306762,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 5, 2024. Archived July 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2019ContourGlobal197โ€œAcquisition of combined heat and power portfolio in Mexico from Alpek,โ€ ContourGlobal, January 7, 2019. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/igFed
2019GlencoreMerchantCantos198โ€œ2019 Sustainability Report Highlights,โ€ Glencore, 2019. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2019Lightsource BP199โ€œLightsource BP to accelerate global solar growth with further investment from BP,โ€ BP, December 5, 2019. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gibdu
2019New Age200โ€œSale Of New Age Interest In Marine XII Licence,โ€ New Age, June 6, 2019. Archived June 15, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/y2Roj
2019Nord Stream 2201โ€œBrunswick,โ€ Best in Brussels, 2021. Archived June 7, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2019Ophir Energy202โ€œOphir Energy plc (“Ophir”) Sale of Block 5, Mexico,โ€ Morning Star, May 16, 2019. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2019Sinopec203โ€œSINOPEC Launches Sustainability Report in Saudi Arabia,โ€ Newswire, August 15, 2016. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/s20lV
2018AramcoMedia and investor relations for IPO204Sean Czarnecki, โ€œNo โ€˜Khashoggi effectโ€™: Agencies donโ€™t abandon Saudi Arabia despite international outcry,โ€ PR Week, November 7, 2018. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/hNZgq,205Ryan Heath, Eline Schaart and Philip Kaleta. โ€œSaudi Arabia, the PR client no one wants to talk about,โ€ Politico, October 26, 2018. Archived February 26, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/4C3o7
2018Bowleven206โ€œEtinde – Rig Contract,โ€ Bowleven, February 1, 2018. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2018BP207Sam Burne James. โ€œBrunswick retains BP role despite WPP โ€˜preferred partnerโ€™ deal with energy giant,โ€ PR Week, May 10, 2018. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2018ContourGlobal208โ€œCG press release – Kosovo EPC initial selection and RFP,โ€ ContourGlobal, September 3, 2018. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/oBz9O
2018Gulf Marine Services209โ€œAnnual Report 2018,โ€ Gulf Marine Services, 2018. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2018New Age210โ€œEtinde Operational Update,โ€ New Age, October 18, 2018. Archived May 11, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/MSp8A
2018Saipem211โ€œSaipem awarded offshore contract variations worth 900 million USD for the Optimised Ramp Up phase of the Zohr Field Development Project,โ€ Saipem, July 27, 2018. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Ia3a8
2017AramcoMedia and investor relations for IPO212โ€œAramco splits IPO advisory roles, appoints Brunswick,โ€ Reuters, May 5, 2017. Archived June 3, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,213โ€œBrunswick Group Wins PR Account Of Aramco And DIFC,โ€ OMNES Media, May 7, 2017. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2W3x9
2017Bowleven214โ€œAnnual Report and Accounts 2017,โ€ Bowleven, 2017. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2017US, UK and GermanyBPcampaign to โ€œadvance and protect the role of gas โ€“ and BP โ€“ in the future of energy conversationโ€.215Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw
2017Centrica216โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YzX19
2017ContourGlobal217โ€œContact Us,โ€ ContourGlobal, December 29, 2017. Archived December 29, 2017. Archive URL: https://archive.is/EEWI6
2017UKEuropeDrax218โ€œCapital Markets Event and Trading Update,โ€ Drax, June 15, 2017. Archived May 31, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/e1zQ4
2017UKEuropeNational Grid219John Harrington. โ€œNational Grid and Brunswick part company as Teneo Blue Rubicon wins expanded brief,โ€ PR Week, March 13, 2017. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2017New Age220โ€œNew Age Separates Roles Of Chairman And CEO. Founder Steve Lowden Remains Chairman, David Stoopin To Be Appointed As CEO Of New Age,โ€ New Age, June 16, 2017. Archived May 11, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/rGHng
2017Ophir Energy221โ€œAnnual Report and Accounts 2017,โ€ Ophir Energy, 2017. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2017PetrofacMerchantCantos222โ€œFinal results for the year ended 31 December 2016,โ€ Petrofac, February 22, 2017. Archived August 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/CMQTT
2017Puma EnergyMerchantCantos223โ€œAnnual Report 2017,โ€ Puma Energy, 2017. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2017Saipem224โ€œSaipem: new offshore drilling contracts in Mozambique, the Mediterranean and the Black Sea for a total value of $230 million,โ€ Saipem, June 1, 2017. Archived June 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2017Seven Energy225โ€œStrategic Alliance Agreement With Nigerian Petroleum Development Company,โ€ Seven Energy, February 7, 2017. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016BG GroupTakeover by ShellUp to ยฃ5.9 million226Gillian West. โ€œPR giants set to cash in on Shell/BG takeover deal,โ€ The Drum, January 9, 2016. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/nqxGB
2016Bowleven227โ€œPosting of Annual Report and Accounts 2016,โ€ Bowleven, November 22, 2016. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/q28dB
2016BP228John Harrington. โ€œBrunswick,โ€ PR Week, May 1, 2017. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016Centrica229John Harrington. โ€œBrunswick,โ€ PR Week, May 1, 2017. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016UKEuropeDrax230โ€œProposed Acquisition of Opus Energy Group Limited,โ€ Drax, December 6, 2016. Archived May 31, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/vNsrs
2016USNorth AmericaEnergy Transfer PartnersAcquisition of Williams Companies231โ€œEnergy Transfer Equity announces Chancery Court decision in litigation with the Williams Companies,โ€ Energy Transfer, June 24, 2016. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/jpwTJ
2016Gulf Marine Services232โ€œAnnual Report 2016,โ€ Gulf Marine Services, 2016. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016Iberdrola233John Harrington. โ€œBrunswick,โ€ PR Week, May 1, 2017. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016MOL Group234โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, Accessed August August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2ol4n
2016UKEuropeNational GridDivestment of National Gridโ€™s gas-distribution assets235John Harrington. โ€œBrunswick,โ€ PR Week, May 1, 2017. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016New Age236โ€œNew Age secures US$425 million Borrowing Facility,โ€ New Age, June 30, 2016. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/bg4Nq
2016Ophir Energy237โ€œOphir and OneLNG to form a joint operating company to develop Fortuna FLNG Project,โ€ Golar LNG, November 10, 2016. Archived May 30, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/MHza4
2016Puma EnergyMerchantCantos238โ€œAnnual Report 2016,โ€ Puma Energy, 2016. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016KazMunayGaz239โ€œKMG EP publishes the response of Independent Non-Executive Directors (“INEDs”) to NC KMG announcement,โ€ KazMunayGaz, July 14, 2016. Archived May 30, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/RA6wC
2016Saipem240โ€œSaipem awarded new E&C offshore contracts for about 1 billion dollars,โ€ Saipem, November 9, 2016. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gjUWL
2016Seven Energy241โ€œ26 October 2016,โ€ Seven Energy, October 26, 2016. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2016Wood GroupActing for Wood Group in its approach for Amec Foster Wheeler242John Harrington. โ€œBrunswick,โ€ PR Week, May 1, 2017. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2015BG Group243โ€œRecommended Cash and Share Offer for BG Group plc by Royal Dutch Shell plc,โ€ PR Newswire, April 8, 2014. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/uVbvh
2015Bowleven244โ€œEtinde Farm-Out Update – Presidential Decree Gazetted,โ€ Bowleven, February 24, 2015. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf available at DeSmog.
2015USNorth AmericaBP245Mark Schleifstein. โ€œBP must pay local government settlements by Aug. 26, judge rules,โ€ Nola, July 27, 2015. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VQmEG,246โ€œEllen Moskowitz,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 5, 2024. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/UPs65,247Sam Burne James. โ€œBrunswick retains BP role despite WPP โ€˜preferred partnerโ€™ deal with energy giant,โ€ PR Week, May 10, 2018. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/BH5Td
2015UKEuropeDrax248โ€œAnnual Report and Accounts 2015,โ€ Drax, 2015. Archived May 31, 2024. Archived .pdf available at DeSmog.
2015USNorth AmericaEnergy Transfer PartnersAcquisition of Williams Companies249โ€œEnergy Transfer confirms terms of Williams proposal,โ€ Energy Transfer, July 7, 2015. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/vdiyO
2015KazMunayGaz250โ€œKMG EP CEO has resigned,โ€ KazMunayGaz, September 8, 2015. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/JqXsN
2015MOL Group251โ€œMOL Group,โ€ merchantcantos, February 24, 2016. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: http://archive.today/2ol4n
2015New Age252โ€œNew Age starts producing oil from the Nenรฉ Marine Field, offshore Congo,โ€ New Age, January 14, 2015. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/EB4Ut
2015Ophir Energy253โ€œRepayment of Convertible Bond,โ€ NEWS powered by CISION, March 31, 2015. Archived May 30, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/a1gYt
2015Salamander Energy254โ€œSatisfaction of the SONA Condition,โ€ Salamander Energy, January 19, 2015. Archived May 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/GfEwI
2015Seven Energy255โ€œResults for the three months ended 31 March 2015,โ€ Seven Energy, May 29, 2015. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2015Shandong Iron and SteelAcquistion of Tonkolili Iron Ore256โ€œShandong Iron and Steel Group Acquires Remaining Stake in Tonkolili Iron Ore Project,โ€ PR Newswire, April 22, 2015. Archived May 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/oWchF
2015Sinopecโ€œThe Gas Station That Cares – A Better Road Homeโ€257โ€œSinopec Scoops The 2015 Gold Standard Award Corporate Citizenship In Country,โ€ Public Affairs Asia, April 10, 2015. Archived May 27, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Oif3r
2015Trinity Exploration and Production258โ€œStrategic Review,โ€ Trinity Exploration and Production, April 8, 2015. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/KPtZW
2014BG Group259โ€œBG Group agrees sale and charter of LNG vessels,โ€ Investis, December 23, 2014. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/PCasq
2014Bowleven260โ€œEtinde Farm-out agreement signed with LUKOIL and New Age,โ€ Bowleven, June 24, 2014. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014USNorth AmericaBP261Max Stendahl. โ€œSEC Says BP Oil Spill Responder Dumped Stock Amid Crisis,โ€ Law360, April 17, 2014. Archived June 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,262โ€œEllen Moskowitz,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 5, 2024. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/UPs65,263Sam Burne James. โ€œBrunswick retains BP role despite WPP โ€˜preferred partnerโ€™ deal with energy giant,โ€ PR Week, May 10, 2018. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014Centrica264โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YzX19
2014ContourGlobal265โ€œContourGlobal Signs Agreement With Government Of Armenia To Acquire The 405 MW Vorotan Hydro Cascade For $180 Million USD And Make $70 Million USD Capital Investment To Modernize The Plants,โ€ News Wire, January 29, 2014. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/hfp8L
2014Dana Gas266โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, April 19, 2016. Archived April 19, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/xDJQn
2014UKEuropeDrax267โ€œInterim Management Statement,โ€ Drax, May 9, 2014. Archived May 31, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014EDF268Mark Banham. โ€œBrunswick founder Parker receives knighthood,โ€ PR Week, January 2, 2014. Archived December 16, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014Genel Energy269โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, October 18, 2014. Archived October 18, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Vaki6
2014KazMunayGaz270โ€œClaim for environmental damage,โ€ KazMunayGaz, February 27, 2014. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/HxEbe
2014London Mining Plc271โ€œLondon Mining : ANNUAL REPORT CLARIFICATION,โ€ London Mining Plc, April 29, 2014. Archived May 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/13FTy
2014MOL Group272โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, Accessed August August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2ol4n
2014Ophir Energy273โ€œAnnual Report and Accounts 2014,โ€ Ophir Energy, 2014. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014PetrofacMerchantCantos274โ€œPetrofac,โ€ MerchantCantos, October 18, 2014. Archived October 18, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.is/5aupx
2014Salamander Energy275โ€œSalamander Energy plc Announces Agreement to Sell 40% Stake in Greater Bualuang Area,โ€ Salamander Energy, July 21, 2014. Archived May 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014Seven Energy276โ€œAnnouncement of sale of $100,000,000 10.5% Senior Secured Notes by Seven Energy Finance Limited through a private placement to Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority,โ€ Seven Energy, October 10, 2014. Archived May 30, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014ShellMerchantCantos277โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, April 19, 2016. Archived April 19, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7yPhm
2014Sinopec278Sir Alan Parker. โ€œChairmanโ€™s letter,โ€ Brunswick Group, Spring 2014. Archived July 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014TAQAMerchantCantos279Brittany Golob. โ€œCorporate & Financial Awards recognises best in city comms,โ€ Communicate Magazine, July 15, 2014. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2014Trinity Exploration and Production280โ€œEl Dorado exploration well result,โ€ Trinity Exploration and Production, February 7, 2014. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iw8TA
2014Vitol281โ€œVitol 2013 Results,โ€ Vitol, March 23, 2014. Archived May 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/wa4vK
2013BG GroupFinancial PR account282โ€œBG Group Ends Lengthy Maitland Relationship,โ€ PRovoke Media, January 23, 2013. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/izuDG
2013Bowleven283โ€œFirst Oil PLC acquired 30% stake in Bowleven New Ventures Limited from BowLeven plc.,โ€ Market Screener, July 4, 2013. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Xvqg1
2013USNorth AmericaBP284Jef Feeley. โ€œBP Seeks to Halt Some Gulf Oil-Spill Settlement Payments,โ€ Bloomberg, April 2, 2013. Archived June 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,285Sam Burne James. โ€œBrunswick retains BP role despite WPP โ€˜preferred partnerโ€™ deal with energy giant,โ€ PR Week, May 10, 2018. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2013Chevron286Aarti Shah. โ€œBrunswick US Head Mike Buckley Departs For Facebook Comms Role,โ€ PRovoke Media, January 31, 2013. Archived June 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2V6SO
2013UKEuropeDrax287โ€œAnnual Report and Accounts 2013,โ€ Drax, 2013. Archived May 31, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2013London Mining Plc288โ€œAUDITED FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE FULL YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2012,โ€ London Mining Plc, March 21, 2013. Archived May 28, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2013Ophir Energy
289โ€œOphir Energy Plc : Total Voting Rights – May 2013,โ€ Market Screener, June 3, 2013. Archived May 30, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/L1aaV
2013PetrofacMerchantCantos290โ€œPetrofac,โ€ MerchantCantos, October 18, 2014. Archived October 18, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.is/5aupx
2013Puma EnergyMerchantCantos291Ian Paget. โ€œJudging Transform Awards 2013,โ€ Logo Geek, May 18, 2014. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/zbMhj
2013USNorth AmericaRiverstone EnergyCommunications for IPO292โ€œBrunswick backs float of Lord Browneโ€™s Riverstone Energy fund,โ€ PR Week, September 25, 2013. Archived May 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2013Salamander Energy293โ€œAnnual Report and Accounts,โ€ Salamander Energy, April 19, 2013. Archived May 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Dw6Tw
2013Seven Energy294โ€œAccugas Wins African Quality Service Award For Gas Processing & Transportation,โ€ The Nigerian Voice, September 3, 2013. Archived May 30, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/i1nqR
2013ShellMerchantCantos295โ€œMerchantCantos Investor Video,โ€ Merchant Cantos, April 19, 2016. Archived April 19, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7yPhm
2013Sinopec296โ€œSinopec Sued by Hong Kong Businessman for Imprisonment,โ€ Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, July 24, 2013. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2013TAQAMerchantCantos297โ€œA connected business: Abu Dhabi National Energy Company PJSC (TAQA) Annual Report and Accounts 2013,โ€ TAQA, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2013Trinity Exploration and Production298โ€œTrinity Exploration and Production Corporate Overview,โ€ Trinity Exploration and Production, February 2013. Archived July 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
2013Vitol299โ€œThe Carlyle Group and Vitol Group to invest in Varo Energy to Create a Major New Energy Midstream Group across North-West Europe,โ€ Carlyle, December 19, 2013. Archived May 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/SlVlz

Actions

May 23, 2025

On May 23, 2025, a letter was published in the Financial Times letters page defending corporate sponsorships of the arts. According to Freedom of Information requests filed by campaign group Culture Unstained and shared with DeSmog, this letter was drafted by Brunswick Group as part of its work for its client Sadlerโ€™s Wells. Brunswick also helped coordinate the letter signatories, which included Brunswick clients the V&A, British Museum, Southbank Centre, and the National Theatre. Brunswick Group also liaised with National Gallery Director Gabriele Finaldi and Science Museum Director Ian Blatchford regarding the letter, and both organisations eventually signed it.300Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025.301

According to a Brunswick Group document forwarded to V&A Director Tristram Hunt by Sir Alastair, co-director of Sadlerโ€™s Wells, the publication date of the letter in the Financial Times was intended to mark the one-year anniversary of the Edinburgh International Festivalโ€™s decision to end its 20-year funding partnership with Bailie Gifford. The festival dropped the Scottish fund manager following pressure from authors and others working in the publishing industry over the companyโ€™s investments in fossil fuels and arms.302Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025.

The letter argued that โ€œOur museums, theatres, festivals and artists need to operate within the economic structures in which society operates… we must find a way to show that cultural organisations contribute to a better world, and partnership with business and philanthropy is an admirable and valuable part of that mission.โ€ The text also quoted Culture Secretary Lisa Nandyโ€™s warning in a February 2025 speech that โ€œmoral puritanismโ€ towards corporate funding risks โ€œkilling offโ€ arts and culture.303Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025.304

November 2024

Freedom of Information requests filed by campaign group Culture Unstained and shared with DeSmog revealed that Brunswick Group proposed to develop an 18-24 month communications strategy for the performing arts theatre Sadlerโ€™s Wells.305Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025. This was against a backdrop of growing protests urging Sadlerโ€™s Wells to cut ties with its sponsor, Barclays, a British bank, due to the bankโ€™s investments in fossil fuels and arms.306Hannah Davenport. โ€œClimate protesters storm theatre show over Sadlers Wells fossil fuel sponsorship,โ€ Left Foot Forward, September 1, 2023. Archived December 8, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/65YFl,307Georgia Luckhurst. โ€œCampaign calls on Sadler’s Wells to end Barclays sponsorship,โ€ The Stage, November 15, 2023. Archived December 8, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/zX0rj 

The November 2024 communications strategy brief devised by Brunswick Group suggested Sadlerโ€™s Wells core message should be โ€˜Dance Matters.โ€™ A diagram depicted issues Sadlerโ€™s Wells should engage on, including โ€œculture as a driver for the economy.โ€ Sadler’s Wells’ leadership would later repeat this Brunswick-devised language in their letter published in the Financial Times in May 2025. โ€œEthical funding,โ€ โ€œculture as a target for activism,โ€ and โ€œgovernment culture policyโ€ were all greyed outโ€”marking them as issues that Sadlerโ€™s Wells should avoid.308Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025.309

March 2024

Brunswick Group spoke at Economist Impactโ€™s (The Economistโ€™s in-house media brand) 9th Annual Sustainability Week (Sustaining Planet and Profit), on a panel called โ€œTaking a stance โ€” How can companies navigate the court of public opinion?โ€310โ€œ2024 agenda (Day 2 โ€“ March 5th),โ€ Economist Impact, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/jZVem Other speakers included BP,311โ€œ2024 agenda,โ€ Economist Impact, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/jZVem who was also an event sponsor,312โ€œ2024 sponsors,โ€ Economist Impact, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Chevron,313โ€œ2024 agenda,โ€ Economist Impact, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/jZVem and National Grid.314โ€œ2024 agenda,โ€ Economist Impact, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/jZVem BP and National Grid were both Brunswick clients in 2024.315โ€œBrunswick Group LLP,โ€ ARL, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/I4W9w,316โ€œPre-Close Update ahead of 2023/24 Full Yr Results.,โ€ National Grid PLC, November 10, 2022. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/tvnBq

February 2024

Stanford University recruited Brunswick Group to manage criticism from campus activists for the Universityโ€™s extensive ties to the fossil fuel industry.317Owen Davis, โ€œStanford sustainability schoolโ€™s partner sparks controversy,โ€ Blog Herald, July 9, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/G3ETy Brunswick Groupโ€™s role, as described by Stanford, would be to tackle โ€œpotential reputational challenges,โ€ develop a PR strategy that โ€œleverages Stanfordโ€™s reputation, and addresses key stakeholder concerns,โ€ and to communicate Stanfordโ€™s Doerr School of Sustainabilityโ€™s โ€œsustainability goals and initiatives.โ€318Dharna Noor. โ€œStanford disappoints critics of fossil fuel donations by hiring PR firm with big oil ties,โ€ The Guardian, June 17, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/snNqg The Guardian reported that the recruitment of Brunswick Group led to further backlash from students because of Brunswick Groupโ€™s own extensive ties to the fossil fuel industry.319Dharna Noor. โ€œStanford disappoints critics of fossil fuel donations by hiring PR firm with big oil ties,โ€ The Guardian, June 17, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/snNqg

Stanford University has previously accepted funding from BP, Chevron, and Shell,320Dharna Noor. โ€œStanford disappoints critics of fossil fuel donations by hiring PR firm with big oil ties,โ€ The Guardian, June 17, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/snNqg all of which have been Brunswick Group clients.321Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw,322Aarti Shah. โ€œBrunswick US Head Mike Buckley Departs For Facebook Comms Role,โ€ PRovoke Media, January 31, 2013. Archived June 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2V6SO,323โ€œPaul Raeburn,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/XeMqW In 2017, Brunswick Group encouraged BP to work with academic institutions such as Princeton to promote fossil fuels (further details below), though it is not known to have worked with Stanford previously.324Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw

February 2024

Brunswick Group was a โ€˜strategic partnerโ€™ of an African mining conference,325โ€œ2024 Partners,โ€ Mining Indaba, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. described as โ€œthe worldโ€™s largest African mining investment event.โ€326โ€œEmbracing the power of positive disruption: A bold new future for African mining,โ€ Mining Indaba, 2023. Archived August 16, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

January 23, 2024

Wolfgang Blau, managing partner of the Brunswick Group’s global climate hub, spoke at an event at the University of Pennsylvaniaโ€™s Perry World House: โ€œUnderstanding Outcomes from the Latest UN Climate Conference.”327โ€œEvents,โ€ Perry World House, 2024. Archived August 9, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/KPD7N Blau was a Visiting Fellow of Perry World House in 2023.328โ€œWolfgang Blau,โ€ Brunswick Group, December 30, 2022. Archived December 30, 2022. Archive URL: https://archive.is/h0NKa

January 2024

In November 2023, PR Week reported that Brunswick Group and Sir Alan Parker were assisting Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labour Party in opposition at the time, in building relationships with business, and that they would be facilitating a high-level briefing for Starmer in January 2024. Starmer said that he wanted to focus on skills and training in the workforce to drive ‘growth, the transition to net zero and capture the benefit of new technologies.’329Jonathan Owen. โ€œBrunswick hosting Sir Keir Starmer engagement event,โ€ PR Week, November 21, 2023. Archived August 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. โ€˜This is Moneyโ€™ reported that the relationship is likely to have been pro bono.330Alex Brummer, โ€œLabour’s Sir Keir Starmer cosies up to top City spin doctors,โ€ This is Money, November 18, 2023. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/MKWBA

2023

The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG) appointed Brunswick Group as its Public Relations advisor.331โ€œTRIG 2023 Annual Report,โ€ TRIG, 2023. Archived May 31, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. TRIG is a British investment trust dedicated to investments in renewable energy.”332About Us,โ€ TRIG, Accessed May 31, 2024. Archived May 31, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

2023

In 2023, Brunswick Group spent between 100,000โ‚ฌ and 199,999โ‚ฌ lobbying the EU on behalf of Lightsource BP, a solar energy company, regarding the EU Net-Zero Industry Act.333โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Lightsource BP was 50% owned by BP between 2019 and 2023, with BP acquiring full ownership in November 2023.334โ€œbp agrees to take full ownership of Lightsource bp,โ€ BP, November 30, 2023. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/z8wJi

2023

Brunswick Group worked for at least three clients in 2023 who are focused on developing carbon markets, including the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative. The Africa Carbon Markets Initiative has been controversial,335โ€œA wolf in sheepโ€™s clothing: why Africa should shun carbon markets,โ€ Climate Change News, September 7, 2023. Archived June 18, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/xMwwM with some organizations arguing that it is a โ€œfalse solutionโ€ that distracts from the need to decarbonize.336Ashoka Mukpo, โ€œCan carbon markets solve Africaโ€™s climate finance woes?,โ€ Mongabay, November 7, 2023. Archived June 18, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/M5W9J

According to LobbyFacts, Brunswick spent between 200,000โ‚ฌ and 299,999โ‚ฌ in 2023 on lobbying the EU on energy access and the green transition in developing countries on behalf of its client, the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP).337โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) describes itself as bringing together philanthropy, governments, development partners, and the private sector โ€œto accelerate the green energy transition to end energy poverty across emerging economiesโ€. GEAPP was launched at COP26 with a commitment of US$1.5 billion from The Rockefeller Foundation, IKEA Foundation, and the Bezos Earth Fund. In 2023, it was one of the organizations that launched the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative.338โ€œGlobal Energy Alliance for People and Planet,โ€ GEAPP, Accessed June 18, 2024. Archived June 18, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/xIwZI

Brunswick Group also worked for the UAE Independent Climate Change Accelerators (UICCA).339โ€œUAE Carbon Alliance Joins Africa Carbon Market Initiativeโ€™s Advance Market Signal to Purchase US$450 million of High-quality African Carbon Credits by 2030,โ€ Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, September 4, 2023. Archived June 6, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/9D9fS UICCA was launched in 2022 and is led by a member of the UAE Royal family, Her Highness Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, and also works on developing the green economy.340โ€œUAE Independent Climate Change Accelerators launches UAE Carbon Alliance, Chaired by Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan,โ€ UAE Independent Climate Change Accelerators (UICCA), June 7, 2023. Archived September 5, 2023.Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Brunswick Group also worked with Emirates NBD (Dubai’s government-owned bank) in 2023.341โ€œEmirates NBD introduces Compliant Carbon Market Trading,โ€ Zawya, July 4, 2023. Archived July 12, 2023. Archived URL: http://archive.today/Gky34

November 30 – December 13, 2023

Brunswick Group worked with the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions for COP28,342โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and attended COP28 itself. A LinkedIn post by a Brunswick executive showed that Brunswick represented an unknown number of corporate clients at COP28, in addition to the UN climate champions: โ€œIt was a great experience to be able to visit the COP site as well as contribute to the great work Brunswick Group did across a broad spectrum of their corporate clients participating in the event,โ€ the executive said.343โ€œMarcus Digby-Johns,โ€ LinkedIn, 2023. Accessed June 3, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

March 1, 2023

Brunswick attended a meeting with Aleksandra Tomczak, an EU official. Tomczak was serving as a cabinet member to the Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, whose portfolio at the time included the European Green Deal. The subject of the meeting was gas investment in Africa. Kosmos Energy Ltd,344โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. a Brunswick client,345โ€œKosmos Energy Ltd.,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. also attended the meeting. Kosmos Energy is an American fossil fuel company that holds several production and development operations in Africa.346โ€œAbout Kosmos,โ€ Kosmos Energy, Accessed July 8, 2024. Archived July 8, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/V98w6

January – March 2023

Brunswick Group lobbied on behalf of the Sustainable Homes and Buildings Coalition in the UK.347โ€œBrunswick Group Advisory Ltd,โ€ Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, Accessed August 12, 2024. Archived August 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The Sustainable Homes and Buildings Coalition is a coalition between NatWest Group, British Gas, Worcester Bosch, and Shelter, which aims to improve UK buildingsโ€™ energy efficiency and address barriers to meeting net zero in the UK buildings environment.348โ€œNatWest Group launches โ€˜Sustainable Homes and Buildings Coalitionโ€™,โ€ NatWest Group, July 26, 2021. Archived August 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/0AoXS

December 2022

[O]penDemocracy revealed that Brunswick Group was simultaneously working for fossil fuel clients such as BP and Aramco as well as for the UN โ€œhigh-level climate championsโ€. Brunswick Group was working with the Climate Champions to develop UN-backed climate policies and campaigns, including the โ€œRace to Zeroโ€ campaign, which encourages businesses to act on climate change.349Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw

The Brunswick Group had been working for the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions since at least 2019. Brunswick partner Phil Drew, who had become a special adviser to the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions, led the work. Drew had worked for BP on behalf of Brunswick Group in at least 2017 and 2018, and, when asked by openDemocracy, Brunswick Group would not confirm or deny whether Drew had continued to work on the BP account after he began working with the Climate Champions.350Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw

In response to criticism from environmental organization Clean Creatives, a spokesperson for Brunswick Group told PR Week: โ€œWe believe it is vital to be engaged with companies in the most complex sectors to decarbonise.โ€ The spokesperson also said, โ€œWe aspire to provide clients across all industries with world-class advice on what is expected of them on climate change โ€ฆ and the actions they can take to build trust and credibly demonstrate theyโ€™re part of the solution rather than part of the problem.โ€351Elizabeth Wiredu. โ€œBrunswick accused of hypocrisy over fossil-fuel clients,โ€ PR Week, December 7, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Research has shown that portraying themselves as โ€œpart of the solutionโ€ whilst continuing to contribute to climate change is a greenwashing technique widely used by fossil fuel companies.352โ€œA bunch of green lies: Fossil fuel companiesโ€™ greenwash advertising uncovered by Client Earth,โ€ Badvertising, April 23, 2021. Archived July 8, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/jWlTj,353May CI van Schalkwyk, Nason Maani, Mark Petticrew. โ€œChapter 12 The Fossil Fuel Industry: Fueling Doubt and Navigating Contradiction,โ€ in The Commercial Determinants of Health, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/HsAOb

Frances Way, executive director of the Climate Champions team, said to openDemocracy: โ€œWe collaborate with a wide-range [sic] of organisations, including Brunswick, that are working to achieve a resilient, 1.5ยฐC-aligned future, requiring actors across all sectors of the economy to transition, including among the most systemically important industries that need to decarbonise.โ€ The climate champions did not respond when asked by openDemocracy whether Brunswick Group was in breach of the Race to Zero guidelines.354Lucas Amin and Ben Webster โ€œRevealed: Key UN climate campaign being advised by a Big Oil PR firm,โ€ openDemocracy, December 1, 2022. Archived December 2, 2022. Archived URL: http://archive.today/a5B4l

November 6 – November 20, 2022

Brunswick Group worked with the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions for COP27.355โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

November 2022

Brunswick Group was named in a consultation report for the Viking CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) project.356โ€œViking CCS pipeline Non-Statutory Consultation Report,โ€ Viking CCS, November 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The Viking CCS project is designed to transport CO2 emissions captured from the heavily polluting Humber region in the UK and store them in gas fields in the North Sea.357Michael Buchsbaum. โ€œWill The UKโ€™s Flagship Climate โ€˜Solutionโ€™ Be Used to Pump More North Sea Oil?โ€ DeSmog March 19, 2024. The project is a joint venture between Harbour Energy and BP, both Brunswick Group clients in 2022. 

The report detailed the stakeholder engagement and consultation activities undertaken by Harbour Energy for the project between early 2021 and mid-to-late 2022. The report said that โ€œTo date, several public affairs activities have been carried out by Harbour Energy, with support from Brunswick Group.” A table provides a breakdown of these activities, and includes:358โ€œViking CCS pipeline Non-Statutory Consultation Report,โ€ Viking CCS, November 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

  • Engagement with Her Majestyโ€™s Treasury ahead of the Net Zero review (an independent review of the UK government’s approach to delivering its net zero target).
  • Meetings with MPs.
  • Attendance at a Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage All-Party Parliamentary Group.

Source: Viking CCS.359โ€œViking CCS pipeline Non-Statutory Consultation Report,โ€ Viking CCS, November 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

A further table details media engagement conducted with support from Brunswick. This table includes engagement with news outlets such as The Guardian, The Telegraph, CNN, and The Economist, as well as with various trade and local media outlets. The report said that these engagement efforts resulted in a published article about the Viking CCS project in Business Live, a source of UK business news.360โ€œViking CCS pipeline Non-Statutory Consultation Report,โ€ Viking CCS, November 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The Business Live article said that the project โ€œproposes to hold at least 11 million tonnes of CO2 per year, providing the capacity to help decarbonise more than 50 per cent of the Humber regionโ€™s industrial activityโ€.361David Laister. โ€œHuge carbon capture project launches planning consultation on 53km cluster pipeline to North Sea storage,โ€ Business Live, April 25, 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. In June 2024, the Viking CCS project website said โ€œ10 million tonnes COโ‚‚ captured per year by 2030โ€.362โ€œCapturing COโ‚‚. Securing the future.,โ€ Viking CCS, Accessed June 4, 2024. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/QKXWp

Brunswick Group provided PR services for the Viking CCS transportation and storage project from 2021 to at least 2023.3632021 & 2022: โ€œViking CCS pipeline Non-Statutory Consultation Report,โ€ Viking CCS, November 2022. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. ,3642023: โ€œHarbour Energy and bp agree to develop the Viking CCS project,โ€ Viking CCS, Accessed June 4, 2024. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/rcyEF AND โ€œHarbour Energy and bp agree to develop the Viking CCS project,โ€ BP, April 11, 2023. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/fy2gj    

October 2022

According to openDemocracy, Brunswick Group announced the opening of an office in Riyadh, the Saudi Arabian capital, in October 2022.365Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œRevealed: Key UN climate campaign being advised by a Big Oil PR firm,โ€ Open Democracy, December 1, 2022. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/a5B4l Days later, Brunswick helped Arabian Drilling, an oil contractor, and Marafiq, a gas power company, launch successful initial public offerings (IPOs) on the Saudi stock exchange.366Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œRevealed: Key UN climate campaign being advised by a Big Oil PR firm,โ€ Open Democracy, December 1, 2022. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/a5B4l,367Announcement of the Final Offer Price for the IPO of Arabian Drilling,โ€ Arabian Drilling Company, October 11, 2022. Archived May 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,368โ€œTariq Al Buhosi,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed May 15, 2024. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/tfCGO

March 2022

The Financial Times reported that Brunswick Group had terminated its contract to work on Nord Stream 2, a gas pipeline project. Brunswick declined to comment, but the article suggested that Brunswick was among several PR agencies cutting ties with Russian clients due to fears of reputational damage amid sanctions against Russia.369Daniel Thomas. โ€œPublic relations firms cut Russia ties amid reputational fears,โ€ Financial Times, March, 2022. Archived March 2, 2022. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

January – March 2022

Brunswick Group lobbied for Valero, the world’s largest independent petroleum refiner,370โ€œAbout,โ€ Valero, Accessed August 12, 2024. Archived August 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/hb2hx in the UK between January and March 2022.371โ€œBrunswick Group Advisory Ltd,โ€ Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, Accessed August 12, 2024. Archived August 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

October 31 – November 13, 2021

Brunswick Group worked with the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions for COP26.372โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

April 2021

In 2021, the oil and gas company Chrysaor merged with Premier Oil plc in a reverse takeover, and both were subsequently absorbed by Harbour to create Harbour Energy plc, making the newly formed company the largest independent oil and gas company listed on the London Stock Exchange.373Mark Williamson. โ€œAppeal of North Sea underlined by UKโ€™s biggest oil independent,โ€ The Herald, April 2, 2021. Archived April 2, 2021. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/hGSGX 

Brunswick Group advised Chrysaor during this transaction.374โ€œChrysaor Holdings Limited completed the acquisition of Premier Oil plc in a reverse merger transaction,โ€ Market Screener,March 30, 2021. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lRmT6 Following the transaction, Brunswick Group began working for Harbour Energy.375โ€œHarbour Energy to be admitted to trading,โ€ Harbour Energy, April 1, 2021. Archived May 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/vg5tr

2021

Brunswick Group held four meetings in March 2021 with members of the cabinets of Commissioner Kadri Simson (the European Commissioner for Energy), Frans Timmermans (Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for the European Green Deal), Virginijus Sinkeviฤius (European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries), and Margrethe Vestager (European Commissioner for Competition). All of these meetings were to discuss the implementation of the European Green Deal.376โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. SUEZ, a Brunswick client, also attended these meetings.377โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,378โ€œBrunswick,โ€ Best in Brussels, 2021. Archived June 7, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. SUEZ is a French waste and water management company.379Foo Yun Chee. โ€œVeolia and Suez gain EU green light for $14.7 bln deal,โ€ Reuters, December 14, 2021. Archived July 20, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/X1HxU

In 2021, SUEZ and its rival Veolia were seeking EU approval to merge. In December 2021, Reuters reported that SUEZ and Veolia had received EU antitrust approval for the 13 billion-euro deal.380Foo Yun Chee. โ€œVeolia and Suez gain EU green light for $14.7 bln deal,โ€ Reuters, December 14, 2021. Archived July 20, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/X1HxU Regarding the approval, Margrethe Vestager said, โ€œBy this decision, the Commission ensures that this transaction will not adversely affect competition in the water and waste markets, two sectors that are key to the European Green Deal and the circular economy.โ€381โ€œEuropean Commission approves the acquisition of Suez by Veolia,โ€ Circular, December 16, 2021. Archived June 7, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/FE44d

September 2020

In 2020, Brunswick won an Asia-Pacific SABRE award in the business-to-business category for โ€œCreating social value through innovation and communicationsโ€ for its client Sinopec.382โ€œ2020 SABRE Awards Asia-Pacific Winners,โ€ PRovoke Media, 2020. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/lP1ed

July 2020

Brunswick Group featured Eni Independent Non-Executive Director Karina Litvack on its podcast โ€œThe ESG Agenda.โ€ The podcast episodeโ€™s description is โ€œWhy good Boards are putting climate governance at the heart of corporate agendas.โ€ In the episode, Litvack discusses Eniโ€™s carbon emissions targets, which she describes as โ€œtransformativeโ€ and โ€œradical.โ€ During the podcast, the Brunswick Group presenter, Amelia Pan, says, โ€œThat seems to be one step further than the other oil and gas companies,” and that this work is โ€œunbelievableโ€ and โ€œamazing.โ€383โ€œWhy good Boards are putting climate governance at the heart of corporate agendas, with Karina Litvack, NED of ENI SpA,โ€ The ESG Agenda podcast Season 1 Episode 3, Brunswick Group, July 1, 2020. Archived December 9, 2024. Archived .mp3 on file at DeSmog. Eni is not known to be a Brunswick Group client. 

Source: X.384Brunswick Group. “Karina @litvack_ I-NED at Eni SpA, joins Brunswickโ€™s Amelia Pan for this weekโ€™s episode of The ESG Agenda.,” Post by @BrunswickGroup, July 2, 2020. Retrieved from X.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

June 2020

Brunswick Group was a 2020 SABRE EMEA awards finalist in the Business-to-Business Energy and Natural Resources category for its work for BP on an emissions technology showcase.385โ€œ2020 SABRE EMEA finalists,โ€ PRovoke Media, 2020. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/dfSXa

June 2020

In June 2020, Brunswick Group became an advocate for UN Sustainable Development Goal 13, which calls for urgent action to combat climate change, and publicly signed up to the UN Business Ambition for 1.5ยฐC and the UN Race to Zero.386Elizabeth Wiredu. โ€œBrunswick accused of hypocrisy over fossil-fuel clients,โ€ PR Week, December 7, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

January 20, 2020

Brunswick Group attended the 2020 UK-Africa Investment Summit, alongside its clients Anglo American, BP, Cairn, and New Age.387โ€œGraham Stuart MP to Caroline Lucas MP,โ€ Data.parliament.uk, February 12, 2020. Archived July 29,. 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

2020

Between January and December 2020, Brunswick Group spent between 200,000 and 299,000 euros lobbying the EU on behalf of its client Enviva,388โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed July 28, 2024. Archived July 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/itjoE the worldโ€™s largest producer of wood pellets for energy production.389โ€œLeading in sustainable wood bioenergy,โ€ Enviva, Accessed July 28, 2024. Archived July 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/ZIO7p Brunswick also lobbied for Enviva in the UK.390โ€œBrunswick Group Advisory Ltd,โ€ Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, Accessed August 12, 2024. Archived August 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Enviva brands itself as โ€œa renewable alternative to coal,โ€391โ€œLeading in sustainable wood bioenergy,โ€ Enviva, Accessed July 28, 2024. Archived July 28, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/ZIO7p however, it has been the subject of controversy. Analysis by the Rachel Carson Council found that Envivaโ€™s process significantly increases CO2 emissions compared to coal,392Alexandra Wisner, Robert K. Musil, Shom Tiwari, Sarah Sung, William McAuliff. โ€œClear Cut: Wood Pellet Production, the Destruction of Forests, and the Case for Environmental Justice,โ€ The Rachel Carson Council, 2019. Archived July 28, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and legal challenges have been brought against Enviva for causing harmful local air pollution.393โ€œChallenge from Clean Air Groups Forces NC Wood Pellet Factory to Install Pollution Controls,โ€ Southern Environmental Law Centre, June 3, 2019. Archived July 28, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

December 2 – 13, 2019

Brunswick Group worked with the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions for COP25.394โ€œClimate Progress Update 2022,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2022. Archived July 8, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

September 2019

In a 2022 article on Substack (an online publishing platform), climate reporter and DeSmog contributor Paul Thacker said that he had experienced โ€œharassmentโ€ from a Brunswick employee, Jack Emery, in 2019. He said that this occurred after he wrote an article for the Huffington Post about how Monsanto, the agri-chemical company, had used dubious tactics to undermine critics and to influence the media. These tactics included hiring Hakulyt, a British spy company, to gather information from high-ranking government officials in the U.S. Hakulyt was a Brunswick client around the time the Huffington Post article was published in September 2019, as was Bayer, the company that acquired Monsanto in 2018.395Paul D. Thacker. โ€œThe Brunswick Group: Another PR Firm Spinning Fossil Fuel Messaging Emerges From the Shadows,โ€ The DisInformation Chronicle, October 24, 2022. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Zf8Xd 

Thacker said that โ€œShortly after the article posted, Brunswickโ€™s Emery started in with demands for corrections.โ€ Thacker noted that Emery then โ€œcontinued to badger me with a stream of emails, looping in more and more editors at HuffPost, including the Corrections Editor, UK Editor, and even the Editor-in-Chief.โ€ Thacker said that when he asked Emery if Brunswick had a contract with Bayer, โ€œhe finally ceased the harassment.โ€396Paul D. Thacker. โ€œThe Brunswick Group: Another PR Firm Spinning Fossil Fuel Messaging Emerges From the Shadows,โ€ The DisInformation Chronicle, October 24, 2022. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Zf8Xd

2019

A BP Communications & External Affairs budget, released by the U.S. Congressโ€™s House Committee on Natural Resources, shows that BP reduced Brunswick Group services by $345,000 for the period 2018 to 2019.397โ€œC&EA Budget Variance (BPA_HCOR_00316854),โ€ BP (made public by U.S. House Oversight Committee), March 15, 2022. Archived September 27, 2025. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Brunswick Group worked for BP in both 2018398Sam Burne James. โ€œBrunswick retains BP role despite WPP โ€˜preferred partnerโ€™ deal with energy giant,โ€ PR Week, May 10, 2018. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf available at DeSmog. and 2020.3992020 SABRE EMEA finalists,โ€ PRovoke Media, 2020. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/dfSXa It is unclear whether the $345,000 reduction represented the total services provided by Brunswick Group to BP in 2019 or if it was only a portion of Brunswick’s services, with Brunswick continuing to provide other services to BP in 2019.

2019

In 2019, BP increased its stake in Lightsource BP to 50%400โ€œbp agrees to take full ownership of Lightsource bp,โ€ BP, November 30, 2023. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/z8wJi and launched the campaign โ€œwe see possibilities everywhereโ€- its first since the Deepwater Horizon incident – which focused on BPโ€™s development of renewable energy. The campaign was criticized for greenwashing, given that clean energy accounted for around three percent of BPโ€™s business in 2018.401Chloe Farand. โ€œBP’s First Global Advertising Campaign Since Deepwater Horizon Accused of Being ‘Deceptive and Hypocritical’,โ€ DeSmog, January 29, 2019. The campaign was created by WPP subsidiaries Ogilvy, Purple Strategies, and Mindshare Media.402โ€œOgilvy,โ€ DeSmog, 2023. Brunswick Group worked for Lightsource BP in 2019,403โ€œLightsource BP to accelerate global solar growth with further investment from BP,โ€ BP, December 5, 2019. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gibdu and likely also for BP,404โ€œBPA_HCOR_00306762,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 5, 2024. Archived July 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. though it is not known to DeSmog whether they played a role in the development of this campaign. 

May 2017 – 2019

In May 2017, Reuters reported that Aramco had appointed Brunswick Group to run media and investor relations for its initial public offering (IPO), alongside business consultancy FTI Consulting.405โ€œAramco splits IPO advisory roles, appoints Brunswick,โ€ Reuters, May 5, 2017. Archived June 3, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

In October 2018, in the wake of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Politico reported on the PR agencies working for the government of Saudi Arabia and Saudi entities. In the article, Politico wrote that โ€œBrunswickโ€™s Brussels office said it does not have any relationship with Aramco or any other Saudi entity.โ€406Ryan Heath, Eline Schaart, and Philip Kaleta. โ€œSaudi Arabia, the PR client no one wants to talk about,โ€ Politico, October 26, 2018. Archived February 26, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/4C3o7

In November 2018, PR Week reported that a Brunswick Group spokesperson had said publicly that Brunswick โ€œwill continue to handle financial communications for ARAMCO, as the state-owned petroleum company prepares for what is expected to be a $100 billion IPOโ€ (emphasis added). The spokesperson added that this did not involve any government work.407Sean Czarnecki, โ€œNo โ€˜Khashoggi effectโ€™: Agencies donโ€™t abandon Saudi Arabia despite international outcry,โ€ PR Week, November 7, 2018. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/hNZgq

The IPO took place in December 2019, raising $25.6 billion, making it, at the time, the largest initial stock offering in history.408Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œRevealed: Key UN climate campaign being advised by a Big Oil PR firm,โ€ Open Democracy, December 1, 2022. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/a5B4l 

2018

Brunswick Group produced a โ€œYoung Leaders programmeโ€ in partnership with Mining Indaba,409โ€œEvents Newswire: Mining Indaba launches โ€˜Leaders of Tomorrowโ€™ competition,โ€ Mining IR, December 11, 2018. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ZZKiR an annual mining investment event.410โ€œEmbracing the power of positive disruption: A bold new future for African mining,โ€ Mining Indaba, 2023. Archived August 16, 2023. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Carol Cable, a Brunswick Group partner, acted as a judge for a โ€˜leaders of tomorrowโ€™ competition as part of this programme.411โ€œEvents Newswire: Mining Indaba launches โ€˜Leaders of Tomorrowโ€™ competition,โ€ Mining IR, December 11, 2018. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ZZKiR

Source: LinkedIn Ad Library.412Brunswick Group,” LinkedIn Ad Library, 2024. Archived August 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Make no follow

2016 – 2018

Emails exchanged between Brunswick Group and BP employees from 2016 to 2018, released by the U.S. House Oversight Committee in 2022 and 2024, show that Brunswick Group monitored media coverage of various issues on BPโ€™s behalf during this period.413โ€œBPA_HCOR_00037904,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed June 18, 2024. Archived June 18, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The issues being monitored included the Deepwater Horizon disaster (an explosion on an oil rig that caused 11 deaths and the largest marine oil spill in history414Richard Pallardy, โ€œDeepwater Horizon oil spill,โ€ Britannica, last updated April 27, 2024. Archived May 14, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.),415โ€œBPA_HCOR_00037904,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed June 18, 2024. Archived June 18, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,416โ€œBPA_HCOR_00310011,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. a battle over whether to mandate climate-related financial disclosure,417โ€œBPA_HCOR_00164790,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,418โ€œBPA_HCOR_00303495,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 26, 2024. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,419โ€œBPA_HCOR_00305414,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 26, 2024. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,420โ€œBPA_HCOR_00162480,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 26, 2024. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and the impact of then U.S. president Donald Trumpโ€™s energy policy on climate action.421โ€œBPA_HCOR_00342162,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 26, 2024. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Emails from the same tranche of documents show that Brunswick Group was also tracking the strategy of the Union of Concerned Scientists, a nonprofit science advocacy organization, and the work of science writer Bill McKibben.422โ€œMemorandum September 14, 2022,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, September 14, 2022. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.  

Deepwater Horizon

On May 13, 2016, Hallie Dewey, an account researcher at Brunswick Group, sent BP staff five articles referencing the Deepwater Horizon disaster, published by Bloomberg, Oilprice.com, Common Dreams, Huffington Post, and Greenpeace. Dewey also shared an article by Oil Change International, which highlighted a paragraph describing how the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation had divested from BP. The recipients of the emails were BP communications, legal, and government affairs staff.423โ€œBPA_HCOR_00037904,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed June 18, 2024. Archived June 18, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

In 2018, around the 8th anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, Emily Erdmier, a Brunswick employee,424โ€œEmily Erdmier,โ€ LinkedIn, Accessed July 26, 2024. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. emailed a series of articles from various news outlets to BP staff. A partially redacted email address appears in the recipient list of these emails:425โ€œBPA_HCOR_00310011,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Source: BP internal document, released by U.S. House Oversight Committee.426โ€œBPA_HCOR_00310011,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Kirkland Ellis is a law firm that defended BP in the Deepwater Horizon disaster.427Graham Ruddick. โ€œVolkswagen hires BP oil spill lawyers to defend emissions cases,โ€ The Guardian, September 23, 2015. Archived July 26, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ibcSw The format of this email suggests that Kirkland Ellis was working so intimately with Brunswick that it had its own Brunswick Group email address. 

Union of Concerned Scientists

A further email from Dewey included an article from The Washington Free Beacon. This article discusses the Union of Concerned Scientistsโ€™ strategy for holding fossil fuel companies accountable for their denial of climate change. The article seemed to generate substantial interest from BP. Rachel Stutz, who was at the time BPโ€™s Chief Counsel of Communications and External Affairs,428Paul D. Thacker. โ€œThe Brunswick Group: Another PR Firm Spinning Fossil Fuel Messaging Emerges From the Shadows,โ€ The DisInformation Chronicle, October 24, 2022. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Zf8Xd then emailed senior staff from communications, government affairs, and regulatory affairs (Geoff Morrell, Mary Streett, Robert Stout, and David Jan van Hoogstraten) about this article, saying: โ€œThis story confirms the UCS strategy for state AG [Attorney General] actions. I will have Brunswick pull the UCS emails.โ€ Robert Stout, VP and Head of Regulatory Affairs, also forwarded the article to Marcelo Panelo, a BP senior director of U.S. Federal Regulatory Affairs (Safety & Health).429โ€œBPA_HCOR_00037904,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed June 18, 2024. Archived June 18, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Bill McKibben

Virginia Northington, a Brunswick associate at the time,430โ€œVirginia Northington,โ€ LinkedIn, Accessed July 26, 2024. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. forwarded an opinion piece by climate writer Bill McKibben to several BP employees.431Bill McKibben. โ€œWhat Planet Do I Live On?,โ€ The Crucial Years, September 16, 2022. Archived July 26, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/LdtVd In response, Tom Wolf, Director of Communications and External Affairs at BP, wrote to colleagues:432Bill McKibben. โ€œWhat Planet Do I Live On?,โ€ The Crucial Years, September 16, 2022. Archived July 26, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/LdtVd

โ€œI’m sorry, I live on earth so I don’t get what planet this guy lives on. We all know his diatribe has many holes in it…but his biggest one is the infrastructure piece. Americans are fighting pipelines, but they are also fighting transmission lines that would bring wind energy and solar energy to market…. Simply put, Americans have a Dire Straits mentality. They want their money for nothin’ and their chicks for free.โ€

2017 

Internal BP documents, subpoenaed by the U.S. Congressโ€™s House Committee on Natural Resources, show that Brunswick Group supported BP to โ€œAdvance and protect the role of gasโ€”and BPโ€”in the future of energy conversation.”433Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw,434โ€œBPA_HCOR_00306762,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 5, 2024. Archived July 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

In 2017, Brunswick Group designed an advocacy campaign for BP on gas and methane. Brunswick partner Phil Drew presented the proposed campaign to BP executives, including Bob Stout, BPโ€™s Vice President and Head of Regulatory Affairs. The presentation said that โ€œrenewables dominate the debate on the future of energyโ€ and that because gas was โ€œstill a fossil fuel,” BP needed to โ€œreframe the conversation on gas.”435Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw To achieve this, Brunswick Group recommended BP โ€œposition the positive role of gas in the context of advancing the transition to a low-carbon futureโ€ by emphasizing gas as lower carbon than coal and by presenting gas as a partner to renewables.436Amy Westervelt. โ€œFor LNG, the Moment of Truth Is Now,โ€ Drilled, May 2, 2024. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/zkMzd Another key tactic of the campaign was to position BP as a leader in tackling methane leaks, which are a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions from gas, and which Brunswick described as the โ€œAchillesโ€™ heelโ€ of the case for gas.437Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw The House Committee subsequently concluded that Brunswick Group had encouraged BP to advocate for methane regulation to โ€œadvance BPโ€™s self[-]interest in continuing to produce and sell natural gas.”438Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw

Source: Brunswick.439โ€œAdvocacy campaign gas and methane,โ€ Brunswick, Accessed July 12, 2024. Archived July 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

The campaign also proposed that BP partner with prestigious Princeton University to release new data on gas, allowing BP to โ€œcontribute to the debateโ€, and also with the Environmental Defense Fund,440Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED)441โ€œAdvocacy campaign gas and methane,โ€ Brunswick, Accessed July 12, 2024. Archived July 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. (the main EU instrument regulating pollutant emissions from industrial installations442โ€œIndustrial and Livestock Rearing Emissions Directive (IED 2.0),โ€ European CommissionArchived August 5, 2024. Archived URL: http://archive.today/Jc0TM), and Masdar, the clean energy arm of oil company ADNOC.443Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw 

Source: Brunswick.444โ€œAdvocacy campaign gas and methane,โ€ Brunswick, Accessed July 12, 2024. Archived July 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Brunswick recommended that priority audiences should include the governments of the U.S., UK, Belgium, Germany, and China, alongside โ€œtop[-]tier media,” think tanks, and academics.445Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw,446Amy Westervelt. โ€œFor LNG, the Moment of Truth Is Now,โ€ Drilled, May 2, 2024. Archived July 12, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/zkMzd

It appears that BP embarked on the campaign as recommended by Brunswick Group. In 2018, BP held an event to promote reductions in methane leaks. Princeton professors attended the event, and BP subsequently announced that it was โ€œsupporting” Princeton โ€œto improve scientific understanding of methane.โ€447 โ€œBP Confidential files: Issues Management Working Group IMWG Meeting Notes – 25 September 2017 Caspian 4.53, 14.00 – 17.00,โ€ US Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Archived December 16, 2022. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,448Lucas Amin, Ben Webster. โ€œSecret files reveal how UN climate advisers โ€˜greenwashedโ€™ for BP,โ€ Open Democracy, December 15, 2022. Archived May 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gfFkw.

A draft BP document from 2018, released by the U.S. Congressโ€™s House Committee on Natural Resources, shows that BP planned to continue to hire Brunswick Group to provide โ€œstrategic development and content creationโ€ for the gas and methane campaign from 2019 to 2020, for a fee of $350,000. The ongoing campaign aimed to โ€œPosition BP as [a] strong gas playerโ€ and would continue to position BP as a leader on methane leaks. It would also center gas as a โ€œkey part of BP’s low carbon strategyโ€ and โ€œExplain the benefits of gas as a transition and destination fuel – lower carbon; partner to renewables; vital to meet Paris goals.โ€ As with the previous campaign strategy, the intention was to leverage Princeton, Imperial College, and the University of Edinburgh to advance campaign goals. The document specified that the target audience was โ€œopinion leaders,โ€ and that the campaign would seek to โ€œset context for successful local policy dialogue.”449โ€œBPA_HCOR_00306762,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 5, 2024. Archived July 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Source: U.S. House Oversight Committee.450โ€œBPA_HCOR_00306762,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 5, 2024. Archived July 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

2016

Brunswick Group advised BG Group, a British oil and gas company, regarding its takeover by Shell. The Drum reported that Brunswick Group would receive up to ยฃ5.9 million for this deal.451Gillian West. โ€œPR giants set to cash in on Shell/BG takeover deal,โ€ The Drum, January 9, 2016. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/nqxGB

2016

From 2013 to 2016, Brunswick Group submitted disclosures to the CDP, a nonprofit organization that enables companies and other entities to report their environmental impact. From 2016, Brunswick was no longer listed.452โ€œBrunswick Group,โ€ CDP, Accessed July 29, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/36t7L

2015 – 2016

Brunswick Group represented Energy Transfer Partners,453โ€œEnergy Transfer confirms terms of Williams proposal,โ€ Energy Transfer, July 7, 2015. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/vdiyO,454โ€œEnergy Transfer Equity announces Chancery Court decision in litigation with the Williams Companies,โ€ Energy Transfer, June 24, 2016. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/jpwTJcontroversial pipeline company, on its acquisition of Williams Companies for 32.6 billion USD. This acquisition led to the creation of a massive network of natural gas pipelines in the US.455Alison Sider. โ€œEnergy Transfer to Buy Williams Cos. After Yearlong Pursuit,โ€ The Wall Street Journal, updated September 28, 2025. Archived July 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

April 2015

Brunswick worked for the Chinese company Shandong Iron and Steel when it acquired Tonkolili Iron Ore.456โ€œShandong Iron and Steel Group Acquires Remaining Stake in Tonkolili Iron Ore Project,โ€ PR Newswire, April 22, 2015. Archived May 29, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/oWchF Tonkolili had gone into administration in March 2015,457Silvia Antonioli. โ€œIron ore producer African Minerals to go into administration,โ€ Reuters, March 6, 2015. Archived July 19, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. following accusations that it had been โ€œboth complicit and directly involved in violenceโ€ against villagers by Sierra Leonean Police as the villagers protested the mineโ€™s activities.458Chloe Farand. โ€œโ€˜Black Goldโ€™: Mapping Londonโ€™s African Oil Hub,โ€ DeSmog, May 9, 2018. The case was heard in court, and Tonkolili was later found not responsible.459Clare Connellan and Cecily Highman. โ€œCourt of Appeal confirms no liability for UK mining company in relation to human rights abuses in Sierra Leone,โ€ White & Case, March 18, 2020. Archived July 19, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/bfoM4 Tonkolili Iron Ore was a subsidiary of African Minerals, owned by controversial businessman Frank Timis.460Chloe Farand. โ€œโ€˜Black Goldโ€™: Mapping Londonโ€™s African Oil Hub,โ€ DeSmog, May 9, 2018.

April 2015

Brunswick and Sinopec won the 2015 Gold Standard Award for Corporate Citizenship in Country for the project โ€œThe Gas Station That Cares – A Better Road Home.โ€461โ€œSinopec Scoops The 2015 Gold Standard Award Corporate Citizenship In Country,โ€ Public Affairs Asia, April 10, 2015. Archived May 27, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Oif3r This campaign provided services at gas stations for migrant workers returning home by motorcycle or minibus, including free refueling.462โ€œThe Gas Station That Cares – A Better Road Home, providing services for 10-plus years,โ€ Sinopec, Accessed June 4, 2024. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/aJ4uw

Source: YouTube paagoldstandard account.463โ€œSinopec Scoops The 2015 Gold Standard Award Corporate Citizenship In Country,โ€ YouTube video uploaded by user Paagoldstandard on May 2, 2016. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

July 14, 2014 

MerchantCantos, a former Brunswick Group subsidiary, won a gold award at the 2014 Corporate & Financial Awards for its work with London Mining in the โ€œBest printed report: Small capAIMโ€ category. It also came highly commended in the โ€œBest printed report: Unlisted/Internationalโ€ category for its work with TAQA, a government-controlled energy holding company of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.464Brittany Golob. โ€œCorporate & Financial Awards recognises best in city comms,โ€ Communicate Magazine, July 15, 2014. Archived August 12, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

March 2014

Brunswick Group published two positive articles about its client, Sinopec,465Katrina Nicholas. โ€œSinopec Said to Sign $257 Million 3-Year Loan With 14 Banks,โ€ Bloomberg, May 18, 2012. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/y03oJ,466Sir Alan Parker. โ€œChairmanโ€™s letter,โ€ Brunswick Group, Spring 2014. Archived July 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and its role in the cleanup of the 2012 Hong Kong plastic disaster.467Sir Alan Parker. โ€œChairmanโ€™s letter,โ€ Brunswick Group, Spring 2014. Archived July 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,468Tong Zhao and Crystal Chan. โ€œPlastic Snow,โ€ The Brunswick Review, March 10, 2014. Archived March 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The disaster occurred when six containers of plastic pellets produced by Sinopec fell from a container ship during a typhoon, leading to marine and beach pollution.

2013 – 2021

Brunswick Group has had a longstanding relationship with the oil company Puma Energy, with its subsidiary, MerchantCantos, having worked for Puma Energy since at least 2013,469Ian Paget. โ€œJudging Transform Awards 2013,โ€ Logo Geek, May 18, 2014. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/zbMhj 2016,470โ€œAnnual Report 2016,โ€ Puma Energy, 2016. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 2017,471โ€œAnnual Report 2017,โ€ Puma Energy, 2017. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. and 2021.472โ€œAnnual Report 2021,โ€ Puma Energy, 2021. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. During this period, MerchantCantos redesigned Puma Energyโ€™s branding. Smith Joseph, a creator who worked on this project for MerchantCantos, described the project in his portfolio: โ€œHow do you redefine the brand of a global oil major? By moving the emphasis away from Puma Energy services, and changing the narrative to how Puma Energy empowers customer journeys.โ€473โ€œRedefining The Brand Of An Oil Major,โ€ Smith Joseph, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/GYNCu

Source: Instagram smithjoseph05 account.474โ€œPuma Energy AR17.,โ€ Instagram post by smithjoseph05, May 22, 2018. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .png on file at DeSmog.

MerchantCantos also developed a โ€œBe Puma Safeโ€ campaign to promote road safety among Puma Energy staff.475โ€œBe Puma Safe,โ€ Smith Joseph, Accessed August 16, 2024. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/0C7yW

Source: Facebook PUMA Energy Zimbabwe account.476โ€œAlways be Be Puma Safe,โ€ make no follow Facebook post by PUMA Energy Zimbabwe, November 5, 2020. Archived August 16, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

In 2013, MerchantCantos won a gold prize for โ€œbest visual identity from the extraction sectorโ€ in the Transform Awards for its work with Puma Energy.477Ian Paget. โ€œJudging Transform Awards 2013,โ€ Logo Geek, May 18, 2014. Archived August 16, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/zbMhj

September 2013

Brunswick Group managed the communications for Riverstone Energyโ€™s IPO.478Alec Mattinson. โ€œBrunswick backs float of Lord Browneโ€™s Riverstone Energy fund,โ€ PR Week, September 25, 2013. Archived May 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Riverstone Energy is an investment company that invests in the energy industry and has a significant focus on oil and gas.479โ€œAbout Riverstone Energy,โ€ Riverstone Energy, Accessed May 15, 2024. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/SAchZ Riverstone Holdings LLC established it. Riverstone Holdingsโ€™ partners included Lord Browne, the former CEO of BP and a member of the UKโ€™s House of Lords since 2001.480โ€œLord Browne of Madingley,โ€ UK Parliament, Accessed May 15, 2024. Archived May 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/qwHLW In 2015, DeSmog reported that Riverstone was one of the largest private equity firms in the energy business and was at that time managing over $27 billion in investments in virtually all aspects of the oil and gas industry. 

2013

In 2013, Brunswick Group represented the Chinese oil and gas company Sinopec. This work included managing Sinopecโ€™s public relations response to a lawsuit filed by a Hong Kong businessman.481โ€œSinopec Sued by Hong Kong Businessman for Imprisonment,โ€ Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, July 24, 2013. Archived May 17, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The businessman alleged that Sinopec had conspired with Chinese authorities to have him falsely arrested and detained for five years without explanation.482โ€œHK businessman sues Chinese company on human rights claims,โ€ Hong Kong Lawyer, September 2013. Archived May 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/RGDk1

2013

Brunswick Group met with Lord Green, Minister of State for Trade and Investment, โ€œto discuss trade and investment.โ€ Shell also participated in this meeting.483โ€œDisclosure ministerial meetings,โ€ .gov.uk, 2013. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Brunswick Group has worked for Shell, though it is not known whether Brunswick Group was representing Shell at the time of this meeting.484โ€œPaul Raeburn,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/XeMqW,485โ€œPaul Raeburn,โ€ LinkedIn, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,486โ€œInstitutions,โ€ Art Not Oil Coalition, 2022. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/y18vV Lord Greenโ€™s son-in-law was a Shell executive at this time.487โ€Transparency data: List of ministersโ€™ interests – October 2013,โ€ GOV.UK, updated December 14, 2023 (live link to page “moved or replaced.” Archived April 14, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

January 2012

In 2012, US officials alleged that money paid by BP to one of its former executives might have been designed to influence her testimony during litigation over the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Brunswick Group was involved in the PR response to this allegation, with Brunswick Group employee Ellen Moskowitz stating to the press that BP had no comment on the matter.488Harry Weber. โ€œFeds Challenge Credibility of Former BP Executive,โ€ Manufacturing Net, January 18, 2012. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7Drd3,489โ€œEllen Moskowitz,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 5, 2024. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/UPs65

2012

Brunswick Group worked for Energy Transfer Partners on its acquisition of Sunoco, an American fossil fuel company.490Rob Kozlowski. โ€œ$2.084 billion in retirement assets in Energy Transfer-Sunoco deal,โ€ Pensions & Investments, April 30, 2012. Archived July 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.,491โ€œMark Palmer,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 13, 2024. Archived June 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/QFSRr

2011 – 2012

According to trade magazine PR Week, from September 2011 to April 2012, Brunswick Group worked with EDF Energyโ€™s in-house communications team on a campaign aiming to improve EDF Energyโ€™s reputation in the UK.492John Owens. โ€œCity & Corporate Communications: EDF works to restore consumer trust,โ€ PR Week, September 28, 2012. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. EDF Energy is a UK energy supplier. The UK energy industry had been receiving criticism for its business practices from both consumers493Mark King. โ€œSSE announces 9% energy price rise,โ€ The Guardian, August 22, 2012. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/mHcdG and politicians.494Toby HelmTom Bawden,andHeather Stewart. โ€œChris Huhne attacks energy companies over price increases,โ€ The Guardian, June 11, 2011. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/04gAn The campaign, which had a ยฃ10,000 budget, highlighted EDF Energyโ€™s delayed price increases compared to competitors, and its earlier price reductions. The campaign also aimed to increase EDF Energyโ€™s social presence.495John Owens. โ€œCity & Corporate Communications: EDF works to restore consumer trust,โ€ PR Week, September 28, 2012. Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

January 2011

Brunswick Group participated in a meeting with the then Prime Minister of the UK, David Cameron, to discuss โ€œtrade and investment issues.โ€ Other participants in the meeting included Shell and Riverstone Holdings,496โ€œDisclosure Ministerial Meetings,โ€ .gov.uk, 2011, Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .csv on file at DeSmog. both of which have been Brunswick Group clients.497โ€œPaul Raeburn,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed July 22, 2024. Archived July 22, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/XeMqW,498Alec Mattinson.โ€œBrunswick backs float of Lord Browneโ€™s Riverstone Energy fund,โ€ PR Week, September 25, 2013. Archived May 15, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. However, it is not known to DeSmog whether Brunswick was representing either of them in this meeting. Other participants included the University of Oxford, Aston University, and Imperial College.499โ€œDisclosure Ministerial Meetings,โ€ .gov.uk, 2011, Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .csv on file at DeSmog. Brunswick Group is known to have encouraged BP to work with Imperial College in 2018 as part of BPโ€™s campaign to promote natural gas.500โ€œBPA_HCOR_00306762,โ€ U.S. House Oversight Committee, Accessed July 5, 2024. Archived July 5, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The banks Barclays and Lloyds also participated.501โ€œDisclosure Ministerial Meetings,โ€ .gov.uk, 2011, Archived July 22, 2024. Archived .csv on file at DeSmog.

January 2011

In response to publication of the concluding report by the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling, Ellen Moskowitz, a Brunswick employee502โ€œEllen Moskowitz,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 5, 2024. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/UPs65 (described in the article as a โ€œBP spokeswomanโ€) said: “Given the emerging consensus that the Deepwater Horizon accident was the result of multiple causes involving multiple parties, we support the commission’s efforts to strengthen industrywide safety practices.”503Rachel Streitfeld. โ€œPanel calls for drastic steps to stop future deepwater oil spills,โ€ CNN, January 11, 2011. Archived June 5, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/9YEtj

2011

Brunswick Group worked for Energy Transfer Partners on its acquisition of Southern Union Company,504โ€œEnergy Transfer Equity announces Southern Union stockholders approve merger,โ€ Energy Transfer, December 9, 2011. Archived July 15, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/JVCAU a fossil fuel company that owned over 32,000 km of pipeline. 

2010

Brunswick Group began working on BPโ€™s response to the Deepwater Horizon disaster,505Bennett Roth, โ€œBP, Oil Industry Try to Contain Fallout of Spill,โ€ Roll Call, June 11, 2010. Archived May 14, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/OiDJV which occurred on April 20, 2010.506Richard Pallardy, โ€œDeepwater Horizon oil spill,โ€ Britannica, last updated April 27, 2024. Archived May 14, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. According to PR Week, Brunswick focused on handling the PR aspects related to the litigation BP faced.507Sam Burne James. โ€œBrunswick retains BP role despite WPP โ€˜preferred partnerโ€™ deal with energy giant,โ€ PR Week, May 10, 2018. Archived June 4, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The Telegraph reported that Brunswickโ€™s fee for this initial period ranged between ยฃ10 million and ยฃ30 million.508Jonathan Russell. โ€œBrunswick tapping into BPโ€™s black gold,โ€ The Telegraph, October 21, 2010. Archived June 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/XfI7e

Between 2010 and 2011, BP also contracted WPP agencies Ogilvy and Purple Strategies to manage other facets of its PR response to the disaster.509โ€œOgilvy,โ€ DeSmog, 2023.

February 2009

Brunswick Group won the financial communications account of Drax, which at the time was the UKโ€™s largest coal-fired power station. PR Week reported that the brief was โ€œunderstood to be worth in excess of six-figuresโ€ and would cover โ€œUK financial communications and an element investor relations remitโ€.510Alec Mattinson. โ€œBrunswick scoops Drax brief,โ€ PR Week, February 25, 2009. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

2007

BP’s former chief executive, Lord Browne, recruited Brunswick founder and chairman Alan Parker for personal PR support after BP forced him to quit.511โ€œLord Browne taps Brunswick,โ€ PR Week, May 3, 2007. Archived May 14, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

2004

In 2004, Shell was involved in a major scandal. In January of that year, Shell admitted to having exaggerated its oil and gas reserves by 20%, leading to a share price crash.512Terry Messenger. โ€œOil giant Shell’s investors shocked,โ€ BBC News, July 15, 2004. Archived July 26, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/EtwCe That April, an independent review found that Shell executives had knowingly hidden the company’s oil and gas shortfalls since 2001.513โ€œShell bosses ‘fooled the market’,โ€ BBC News, April 19, 2004. Archived July 26, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/IbcjV The scandal led to the resignation of Shellโ€™s chairman, Sir Philip Watts, head of exploration and production, Walter van de Vijver, and chief financial officer Judith Boynton.514Richard Cann. โ€œShell hires Bruseth to its top media job,โ€ PR Week, May 14, 2004. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

Shell hired Brunswick Group to handle the crisis response.515Richard Cann. โ€œShell hires Bruseth to its top media job,โ€ PR Week, May 14, 2004. Archived July 26, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

July 2002

In 2002, PR Week reported that Brunswick had been โ€œdeeply involvedโ€ in the early days of the Enron crisis, but was no longer working for them.516Julia Hood. โ€œRole of PR grows as Enron tries to repair and rebuildโ€. PR Week, July 1, 2002. Archived June 13, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The Enron crisis was a series of events involving Enron’s dubious accounting practices that culminated in its bankruptcy in 2001.517Peter Bondarenko. โ€œEnron scandal,โ€ Britannica, Accessed June 13, 2024. Archived June 13, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/5SkPt

May 2001

The Guardian newspaper reported that someone left a client dossier belonging to Brunswick Group in a restaurant and that The Guardian had seen parts of the document. The parts seen by The Guardian suggested that Brunswick was working for Gazprom, a Russian state-owned oil and gas company, under the codename Project Potemkin.518Paul Murphy. โ€œCity secrets held by PR firm leaked,โ€ The Guardian, May 14, 2001. Archived June 7, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VxUiz 

According to WARC, a marketing intelligence company, Brunswick later said that the dossier was a press cuttings distribution list for advisers and clients and did not contain any sensitive information.519โ€œPR Firm Brunswick Investigates Loss of Client Dossier,โ€ WARC, May 15, 2001. Archived June 7, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/rXmvv

Subsidiaries

Brunswick Arts. Describes itself as: โ€œDedicated to promoting and managing the reputation and interests of arts, cultural, and charitable organizations. We also help businesses make the most of working with arts and culture โ€“ maximizing sponsorships, developing arts prizes, creating cultural strategies, and advising foundations.”520โ€œGroup Companies,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed August 3, 2024. Archived August 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/3Wp3G

MerchantCantos. An international creative communications agency specializing in branding, employee engagement, investor communications, and sustainability. MerchantCantos became fully integrated into Brunswick as Brunswick Creative in January 2022.521โ€œMerchantCantos to be fully integrated into Brunswick Group,โ€ Brunswick Group, November 2, 2021. Archived August 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/vV15G,522โ€œWe are now Brunswick Creative,โ€ Merchant Cantos, Accessed August 3, 2024. Archived August 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/Km2YF

The Lincoln Center.523โ€œTHE LINCOLN CENTRE LIMITED,โ€ .gov.uk, Accessed August 3, 2024. Archived August 3, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/eCeiM The Lincoln Centre describes itself as โ€œa specialist presentation centre which helps public companies present their key financial announcements to equity analysts, institutional investors and financial journalistsโ€. The Lincoln Centre also hosts corporate events, business seminars, and Annual and Extraordinary General Meetings.524โ€œThe Lincoln Centre,โ€ LinkedIn, Accessed August 3, 2024. Archived August 3, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

Trinity. In 2011, Brunswick described Trinity as focusing on communications coaching and helping โ€œclients engage with their stakeholders internally and externally around the world.” It is unknown to DeSmog whether Trinity still exists as a separate entity from Brunswick Group.525โ€œDifferent Take,โ€ Brunswick Group, 2011. Archived August 3, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 

Other

BDT Capital Partners. In 2021, BDT Capital Partners, a U.S. fund run by Byron Trott, acquired a 10.7% stake in Brunswick.526โ€œBritain’s Brunswick Group to sell nearly 11% stake to U.S. fund – memo,โ€ Reuters, June 23, 2021. Archived August 2, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

As of July 2024, Brunswick Group supported 17 charities.527โ€œSupported charities,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed July 29, 2024. Archived July 29, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Memberships

Brunswick Group is a member of the American European Community Association,528โ€œMembership,โ€ American European Community Association, Accessed August 4, 2024. Archived August 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/er9sZ an organization that, according to Tobacco Tactics (a group that provides data on the tobacco industry), is closely linked to the tobacco industry and has sought to influence tobacco policy.529โ€œAmerican European Community Association,โ€ Tobacco Tactics, Accessed January 30, 2020. Archived August 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/9lyJ3

Member of the Centre for European Policy Studies.530โ€œCEPS Corporate Members,โ€ Centre for European Policy Studies, Accessed August 4, 2024. Archived August 4, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.is/Sb0dS

Member of the British Chamber of Commerce in Belgium.531โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Member of the American Chamber of Commerce to the EU.532โ€œBrunswick Group Limited srl,โ€ LobbyFacts, Accessed June 6, 2024. Archived June 6, 2024. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. The American Chamber of Commerce to the EU has been accused of lobbying against tighter tobacco regulations. It has also been accused of lobbying against climate regulation due to its support for the continued use of natural gas as part of the climate transition.533โ€œAmerican Chamber of Commerce to the European Union,โ€ DeSmog, 2022.

Contact and Address 

London Headquarters:534โ€œContact,โ€ Brunswick Group, Accessed June 17, 2024. Archived June 17, 2024. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/GlEYS

16 Lincolnโ€™s Inn Fields
London, WC2A 3ED
United Kingdom

+44 20 7404 5959

Social Media

Other Resources

Ellen Ormesher. โ€œHow a Big Oil PR Firm Helped Top UK Cultural Institutions Defend Their Fossil Fuel Sponsorships,โ€ DeSmog, December 17, 2025.

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