Sir Peter Ingram Walters (born 11 March 1931) is a retired British businessman. He is a former CEO and chairman of British Petroleum. He was born in Birmingham, United Kingdom, in the family of a police inspector. In 1949, he left

King Edward's School, Birmingham King Edward's School (KES) is an independent school (UK), independent day school for boys in the British Public school (UK), public school tradition, located in Edgbaston, Birmingham. Founded by Edward VI of England, King Edward VI in 1552, it ...

. He gained a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

in 1952. In 1954 he joined British Petroleum. In 1965–1967 Walters served as vice president of BP North America Inc., and in 1971–1980 as BP's regional director for the Western Hemisphere, Australasia and the Far East. He became BP's deputy chairman in 1980. Walters was British Petroleum chairman from 1981 to 1990. He retired from British Petroleum in March 1990. In 1991–1994, he served as chairman of

Midland Bank Midland Bank Plc was one of the Big Four banking groups in the United Kingdom for most of the 20th century. It is now part of HSBC. The bank was founded as the Birmingham and Midland Bank in Union Street, Birmingham, England in August 1836. It ...

. In 1994–200, he was chairman of

SmithKline Beecham GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the tent ...

. He is a former Deputy Chairman of

GlaxoSmithKline GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the ten ...

. Walters was deputy chairman of

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...

in 1990–1999 and

HSBC Holdings HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational universal bank and financial services holding company. It is the largest bank in Europe by total assets ahead of BNP Paribas, with US$2.953 trillion as of December 2021. In 2021, HSBC had $10.8 tril ...

in 1992–2001. In addition, he is a former president of the General Council of British Shipping, the

Society of Chemical Industry The Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) is a learned society set up in 1881 "to further the application of chemistry and related sciences for the public benefit". Offices The society's headquarters is in Belgrave Square, London. There are semi-in ...

and the

Institute for Employment Studies The Institute for Employment Studies (IES) is a British centre of research and consultancy on human resources and employment. Its research is frequently cited in the mainstream national media. The Institute's aim is to "help bring about sustainabl ...

, and has served as a chairman of the governing body of the

London Business School London Business School (LBS) is a business school and a constituent college of the federal University of London. LBS was founded in 1964 and awards post-graduate degrees (Master's degrees in management and finance, MBA and PhD). Its motto is " ...

, president of the

Institute of Directors The Institute of Directors (IoD) is a British professional organisation for company directors, senior business leaders and entrepreneurs. It is the UK's longest running organisation for professional leaders, having been founded in 1903 and incor ...

, president of the

Police Foundation The National Policing Institute, formerly known as the Police Foundation, is an American non-profit organization dedicated to advancing policing through innovation and independent scientific research. It is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. ...

, president of the

Institute of Business Ethics The Institute of Business Ethics or IBE is a non-profit professional organisation based in London, which encourages high standards of business behaviour based on ethical values. They raise public awareness of the importance of doing business eth ...

and a trustee of the

Institute of Economic Affairs The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) is a right-wing pressure group and think tank registered as a UK charity Associated with the New Right, the IEA describes itself as an "educational research institute", and says that it seeks to "further t ...

. Walters was knighted in 1984. He was awarded the Society of Chemical Industry's Centenal Medal, an Honorary Fellowship from the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society (professional association) in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the Ro ...

, an Honorary Fellowship from the

Institution of Chemical Engineers The Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) is a global professional engineering institution with over 33,000 members worldwide. It was founded in 1922 and awarded a Royal Charter in 1957. It has offices in Rugby, London, Melbourne, Wellingto ...

, and the Cadman Medal from the

Institute of Petroleum The Institute of Petroleum (IP) was a UK-based professional organisation founded in 1913 as the Institute of Petroleum Technologists. It changed its name to the Institute of Petroleum in 1938. The institute became defunct when it merged with the I ...

. He has received an Honorary Doctorate of Social Science from Birmingham University, the Honorary Degree of Doctor of

Stirling University The University of Stirling (, gd, Oilthigh Shruighlea (abbreviated as Stir or Shruiglea, in post-nominals) is a public university in Stirling, Scotland, founded by royal charter in 1967. It is located in the Central Belt of Scotland, built w ...

, and an Honorary Fellowship from the London Business School.

References

Living people 1931 births British businesspeople in the oil industry BP people Businesspeople awarded knighthoods Knights Bachelor Alumni of the University of Birmingham {{UK-business-bio-stub