BP chief executive Tony Hayward will hand oversight of day-to-day clean-up and capping operations in the Gulf to another executive, BP's chairman said Friday.

Carl-Henric Svanberg told Sky News that Hayward is going to change his role in dealing with the spill and that the day-to-day operation would be led by BP managing director Bob Dudley.

"It is clear Tony has made remarks that have upset people," Svanberg told Sky News. " He will be more home and be there and be here, but I think it has been a difficult period and as long as we don't close the well and take care of this, there will be criticisms about many things. Right now that is our focus to make that happen."

Svanberg himself apologized this week for his own comment after he called those affected by the spill "small people," the New York Times reports.

"Tony Hayward is BP's chief executive. He is leading the biggest spill response ever mounted and has the full support of the board," BP spokesman Daren Beaudo said in an e-mail to USA TODAY.

Beaudo said the BP chairman was referring to a June 4 press release during his interview with Sky News that announced BP would create a separate stand-alone organization to manage the long-term response once the spill is over that Dudley will lead.

Hayward was grilled Thursday on Capitol Hill by lawmakers about the company's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and its response to the disaster.

Hayward apologized for the April 20 Deepwater Horizon rig explosion that killed 11 workers and the leaking well.

While testifying before the committee, Hayward said it was "too early" to reach conclusions about whether the energy giant cut corners on safety.

(Posted by Jessica Durando)