Inbrief

ConocoPhillips has confirmed that it has withdrawn from the lobbying group Arctic Power, which is urging the US government to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to oil exploration and production. The move, which was made a year ago but has only just come to light, has been welcomed by SRI activists in the US, who had filed shareholder resolutions calling on the company to leave. However, ConocoPhillips did not say why it had pulled out, and warned campaigners not to read too much into the decision.