Science Museum sponsorship deal with oil firm included gag clause
The Science Museum in London signed a sponsorship contract containing a gagging clause with the Norwegian oil and gas company Equinor, agreeing to take care not to say anything that could damage the firm’s reputation, it can be revealed.
The agreement, a copy of which was obtained by the Guardian and the investigative journalism organisation Point Source, concerned sponsorship of the museum’s current Wonderlab exhibition.
It stated that the Science Museum and its trustees must take reasonable care to “not at any time” during the exhibition term “make any statement or issue any publicity or otherwise be involved in any conduct or matter that may reasonably be foreseen as discrediting or damaging the goodwill or reputation of the sponsor”.
The inclusion of the so-called non-disparagement clause has led to accusations of greenwashing from environmental groups.
Equinor was known as Statoil until it changed its name in 2018. This month it was accused of “profiteering” from the energy crisis and higher household bills after posting record annual earnings of £62bn.
During the fourth quarter of 2022 it produced the equivalent of 2,046m barrels of oil a day. It has oil and gas assets in the North Sea, Brazil, Algeria, Angola, Nigeria and Tanzania.
Equinor and the Science Museum declined to reveal how much the oil company paid to sponsor the Wonderlab exhibition.
Environmental groups claim the Science Museum has lost its ability to honestly discuss the true impact of the oil and gas sector on the environment because of gagging clauses it has signed with big businesses.
In 2021, two prominent scientists refused to allow their work to be included in the Science Museum’s collection after it was revealed that the institution had signed a
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