* Shell, Repsol included due to their climate goals

* FACTBOX on Big Oil’s climate targets:

LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters) – The Church of England’s 2.8 billion pound pension fund has put 600 million pounds ($789 million) into a climate index which includes Royal Dutch Shell and Repsol, but shuns BP, Exxon and Chevron.

The Church, which has pressured oil producers to improve their climate targets, based its index on the London School of Economics’ Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI) on companies’ alignment with the goal to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. read more

Stuart Elliott: 30 JAN 2020

London — Shell CEO Ben van Beurden said Thursday the company was “not spending enough” on its new energies business, particularly in electricity.

Speaking to journalists following the release of Q4 earnings, van Beurden said he “desperately” wanted to grow the business more quickly, but it would remain disciplined in its spending.

Shell created its new energies division — which brings together assets in electricity supply and generation, electric vehicle charging, and other new fuels such as hydrogen and biofuels — in 2016. read more

By Tom Kool – Jan 31, 2020, 2:00 PM CST

Shell’s earnings fall by half. Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) saw its fourth quarter earnings fall in half from a year earlier, weighed down by lower oil and gas prices, as well as weaker refining and chemical margins. “All macroeconomic indicators are working against us,” Shell CEO Ben van Beurden said. The disappointing results could slow the pace of share buybacks and result in more asset sales. Shell’s reserve life declined for the sixth year in a row, now only sitting on eight years’ worth of reserves. read more

Alarming warning addressed to The Australian National Offshore Petroleum and Environmental Management Authority.

Please read the information below from retired Shell Global Safety Consultant, Bill Campbell about the fears of a loss of hydrocarbons from the Shell Prelude facility. His comments were triggered by the recent article on Prelude FLNG and the recent intervention and involvement of the Regulator

Preamble 

Some 30 years of government statistics from some 200 installations in U.K. waters demonstrate that despite it being the Regulator and the industries highest safety priority a significant number of dangerous occurrences re the loss of hydrocarbons has continued over this prolonged period. No one will or could argue on this conclusion based not on supposition but on historic data that there is and continues to be a certain inevitability that hydrocarbons will leak into the atmosphere. Subsequent ignition of these leaking hydrocarbons has the potential of loss of life or threats to the structure of the installation. read more

By Nick Cunningham – Jan 30, 2020, 5:00 PM CST

Royal Dutch Shell reported a steep drop in earnings in the fourth quarter, and the financial squeeze may slow the pace of share buybacks and force more asset sales.

Shell’s earnings of $2.9 billion were down by half from a year earlier, leading to a 3 percent drop in its share price on Thursday morning.

After the takeover of BG Group several years ago, the Anglo-Dutch company is now just as much a natural gas major as it is an oil major, so the global gas glut is hitting the company hard. Shell is one of the largest LNG exporters in the world. LNG prices in Asia are at a 10-year low and showing very little signs of life. read more

by Reuters Friday, 31 January 2020 17:13 GMT

The company said that its strategy is in alignment with international climate treaties

THE HAGUE, Jan 31 (Reuters) – Environmental activists chanting “keep it in the ground” blocked the entrance to Shell’s headquarters in The Hague on Friday, protesting at the energy company’s role in climate change, until police dragged them away, detaining 30.

Some of the environmentalists from the Extinction Rebellion and Shell Must Fall! lobby groups wedged themselves between the glass front doors of the building. Others held banners and splashed a black liquid on its front steps, chanting slogans including “ExxonMobil, BP, Shell: take your oil and go to hell!”

“Shell is one of the biggest polluters,” said one woman who had glued herself to a railing outside the building. She declined to give her name. “If we want to have a chance for stopping climate change, Shell is one of the first companies that has to go.” read more

GRAPHIC-Shell’s oil and gas reserve life drops for sixth year in a row

Reuters – UK Focus: 30 January 2020

* Shell’s reserve life drops below 8 years

* Investors have shifted focus away from reserves to profits

By Ron Bousso

LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters) – The number of years of production left in Royal Dutch Shell’s oil and gas reserves fell for the sixth year in a row in 2019 to below eight.

But there was little reaction from investors to the steady decline in what was once considered a key metric for gauging the strength of the world’s major oil and gas companies.

There is a growing perception the world holds enough oil and gas to meet demand many times over, especially against the backdrop of a gradual shift away from fossil fuels because of concerns about climate change. https://reut.rs/2GBtBvC read more

Ron Bousso, Shadia Nasralla: 30 Jan 2020

LONDON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) is reining in its vast $25 billion share buyback programme after lower oil and natural gas prices halved its profit in the last three months of 2019 and sent its shares to their lowest in nearly three years.

The Anglo-Dutch energy company warned again that a slowing global economy could affect its buyback programme, which is the world’s largest, and Chief Executive Ben van Beurden said the coronavirus epidemic was dominating the negative backdrop. read more

JANUARY 30, 2020

ABUJA (Reuters) – A Nigerian court on Thursday issued an arrest warrant for former oil minister Dan Etete and two others in relation to a $1.3 billion oil deal scandal.

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission lawyer Balance Sanga said the arrest warrant was a precursor for declaring Etete wanted before the country sought Interpol help in apprehending him.

“They have to come and face trial”, Sanga told Reuters.

lawyers representing Etete in Italy did not immediately respond to request for comment. read more

Shell slows pace of its share buybacks as profit halves

Ron Bousso, Shadia Nasralla: JANUARY 30, 2020 LONDON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell is cutting the pace of its vast $25 billion share buyback program after lower oil and natural gas prices halved its profit in the last three months of 2019, sending its shares to their lowest since July 2017. 

While the Anglo-Dutch energy company warned again that a slowing global economy could affect its buyback program, which is the world’s largest, Chief Executive Ben van Beurden said Shell still intended to complete it.

Shell is set to buy about $1 billion of shares in the first quarter of 2020, which is down from $2.75 billion per quarter since July 2018 and means it will probably miss its target of completing the program by the end of 2020, analysts said.

Shell had already warned in October that the buyback program could be delayed beyond the target because slowing global growth due to the Sino-U.S. trade war had hit demand for oil, natural gas and chemicals. read more

By JANE DENTON FOR THISISMONEY: PUBLISHED: 10:43, 30 January 2020 | UPDATED: 10:58, 30 January 2020

A global slump in oil prices and ‘challenging’ economic conditions have led to a slump in Royal Dutch Shell’s profits during the final quarter of last year.

The Anglo-Dutch group, which is aiming to halve is carbon emissions by 2050, saw its final quarter profits nearly slashed in half, prompting it to slow down, but not axe, its bumper $25billion share buyback scheme. read more

By Tsvetana Paraskova – Jan 29, 2020, 4:00 PM CST

A key witness for the prosecution back peddled on Wednesday on previous testimony that he had seen evidence that oil majors Eni and Shell were involved in bribery over an oil deal in Nigeria, in the latest twist in the trial against the two oil companies in an Italian court.

Eni and Shell are on trial in Italy for knowing that an alleged payment of US$1.3 billion in bribes was made to the former Nigerian government back in 2011, for which Eni and Royal Dutch Shell secured exclusive rights to develop the now infamous oil block OPL-245 offshore Nigeria. read more

Sam Meredith @SMEREDITH19: PUBLISHED THU, JAN 30 20202:08 AM EST KEY POINTS

• Net income attributable to shareholders on a current cost of supplies (CCS) basis and excluding identified items,  used as a proxy for net profit, came in at $16.462 billion for full-year 2019.
• That compared with a profit of $21.404 billion for full-year 2018, reflecting a year-on-year drop of 23%.
• The Anglo-Dutch energy giant warned last month that it would book additional charges against its income in the fourth quarter.

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell reported a sharp fall in full-year net profit on Thursday, citing challenging macroeconomic conditions and lower oil and gas prices.

Net income attributable to shareholders on a current cost of supplies (CCS) basis and excluding identified items, which is used as a proxy for net profit, came in at $16.462 billion for the full-year 2019. That compared with a profit of $21.404 billion for full-year 2018, reflecting a year-on-year drop of 23%.

Analysts had expected full-year 2019 net income attributable to shareholders on a CCS basis, and excluding identified items, to come in at $17.770 billion, according to data from Refinitiv. read more

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted during the last day or so on Trustpilot.  Visit the Shell Energy page on Trustpilot to view all reviews in their entirety, positive and negative (and Shell Energy responses). Watch out for any fake reviews. Note the reoccurring theme in negative reviews; the difficulty in communicating with the company. Some typos and punctuation amended for ease of reading. Posted 29 Jan 2020.

Terrible customer service stay away from this company

Currently been on hold for nearly an hour !!! Tied into a 5 yr contract with extortionate prices, they want £100 from me to leave !!! Worst company I have dealt with in a long time. read more

By Amos ABBA On Jan 29, 2020

AT the ongoing corruption trial of oil conglomerates, Shell & Eni in Milan, Italy the court listened to the testimony of Isaac Eke, a retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police as he spoke about his role in the ongoing probe of the $1.1 billion Malabu oil scandal. 

At the hearing held at the Palace of Justice in Milan, Eke who was invited to the witness stand by defendant Vincenzo Armanna, past Eni manager, who became one of the main accusers of the current Eni Chief Executive Officer, CEO, Claudio Descalzi amongst other managers. read more

Anna Bateson and Hamish Nicklin: Wed 29 Jan 2020 12.07 GMT

For anyone who believes the world faces an urgent climate crisis, it has been quite a year. The world’s leading scientists tell us we have just twelve years to change human behaviour to avert catastrophe. Teenage climate strikers inspire millions of people, young and old, to protest against inaction, and devastating bushfires sweep across much of Australia. This is the most important challenge of our times.

Our Guardian editorial colleagues have led the world in covering the crisis with expertise and urgency. In May 2019 our editor-in-chief Katharine Viner announced that the Guardian would shift to using more urgent language to describe the climate emergency – and other news organisations have begun to follow suit. read more