Activists gear up for a fight over green-washing at AGMs

James Norrington: April 20, 2021

Shell Outlines Plans for Reducing Its Own Carbon Footprint

The energy giant has high hopes for sustainable aviation fuel

BY LISA LACY: 7 April 2021

While energy giant Shell may not be the first name that comes to mind when you think of sustainability, it’s looking to change that by “reduc[ing] the carbon intensity of all the energy that we sell by 2050.”

That’s according to Dean Aragón, CEO of Shell Brands International AG, who said the company has set milestones toward becoming a net-zero emissions energy business for the years 2023, 2030 and 2035 that are “very clear, measurable and quantifiable targets on the decarbonization journey.” He did not provide specifics. read more

EV subscription service Onto partners with Shell to expand access to charging

British electric vehicle subscription service Onto has partnered with Shell to give its users access to charging stations in preparation for a wave of new EVs coming to market over the next several years.

The partnership, which Shell announced Tuesday, will give Onto customers access to more than 3,400 Shell Recharge charge points in the UK, plus over 17 charging partners within Shell’s network.

“Buying an electric car is a big, scary switch for most drivers,” Onto CEO Rob Jolly told TechCrunch in a recent interview. “Charging anxiety is an issue for them, so we’re trying to make EVs as accessible and affordable as possible, and the Shell partnership is a step up from that.” read more

Shell Using Battery Power Storage for EV Use in Europe

By Thomas Mulloy | March 8, 2021: Facebook

Shell and Alfen have launched a pilot to trial an on-site battery-powered system to support ultra-fast electric vehicle charging at Shell’s Zaltbommel forecourt in the Netherlands.

A Shell first, the battery-powered system offers an alternative solution to costly and time-consuming public grid upgrades by storing electricity in an on-site battery. The increased supply of energy helps power ultra-fast chargers, allowing drivers to simultaneously use the site’s two 175kW charge points. read more

Shell Energy to take part in renewable, gas-based power value chain for grid stability

Shell, one of the largest oil and gas explorer and supplier, sees natural gas as the most suitable alternative to bundle with renewables to meet the grid intermittency challenge during night or when sun is not visible. Bundling natural gas with renewables will allow unhindered power generation for anytime of the day or night.

Ajay Shah, VP, Shell Energy Asia, told FE that Shell through its global pronouncements has expressed its aspirations to participate in the power or electricity value chain and form partnerships on the renewables and gas. read more

Shell New Energies is to acquire a 51% stake in Simply Blue Energy’s Kinsale floating wind venture.

Kinsale was set up to develop the Emerald project, a floating wind farm in the Celtic Sea, off the south coast of Ireland.

The new JV will be operated by Simply Blue Energy supported by Shell floating wind experts, with the project office based in the Cork City Docklands rejuvenation area.

The partnership combines Simply Blue’s track-record in developing floating wind projects and local knowledge of the Celtic Sea environment with Shell’s offshore experience, floating wind expertise and ability to develop large complex projects. read more

Anjli Raval: JANUARY 25, 2020

Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to buy Ubitricity, owner of the largest public charging network for electric vehicles in the UK, as the oil major expands its presence along the power supply chain. 

Shell said on Monday it would buy 100 per cent of the company for an undisclosed amount. Ubitricity, founded in Germany, is a leading European provider of on-street charging for electric vehicles.

FULL FT ARTICLE

Some extracts from current customer comments posted on Trustpilot: “The broadband service is a joke. Been with them on an 18 month contract, and every single day there has been an issue. Sometimes dropping out 50 times a day. They know they are terrible but as long as they remain unpunished, they will continue their fraudulent activities. Avoid at all costs.”

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted over the past few days 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 themes in the negative reviews, including difficulty in communicating with the company. This article posted on 31 December 2020. read more

Some extracts from current customer comments posted on Trustpilot: “Don’t buy Shell Broadband. It takes 3 days to download a game! Always buffers on Netflix and keeps stopping films”: “Zero level of customer service and massive price hikes on broadband. Steer clear.”

Featured below are extracts from negative customer reviews about Shell Energy posted over the past 4 days 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 themes in the negative reviews, including difficulty in communicating with the company. This article posted on 28 December 2020. read more

Oil Majors Stuck Between A Rock And A Hard Place

By Andreas De Vries – Oct 18, 2020, 6:00 PM CDT

Extracts

The past few years have been historic for as far as crude oil forecasts are concerned. Back in 2015 the view that crude oil demand could peak during the 2020s or 2030s was still met with disbelief (and some ridicule…). Economic growth had been pushing crude oil demand up ever year for decades already, so why would things become different, so the reasoning went. Today, however, essentially all major energy forecasters, including BP, Shell, Total, DNV-GL, the IEA and even OPEC, have come round and acknowledge Peak Oil Demand as a realistic possibility. read more

Electric Car Charging Stations Are Finally About to Take Off

(Bloomberg) — The electric vehicle sector has been stuck for years with a chicken-and-egg problem. Until there were extensive networks of public charging stations, a critical mass of people would never feel comfortable driving EVs–but until a critical mass of people were driving EVs, there was no sense in investing in extensive networks of public charging stations.

It may be the coronavirus pandemic that finally breaks the stalemate. BloombergNEF’s latest Long-Term Electric Vehicle Outlook predicts that EVs sales will experience a smaller dip than traditional auto sales as a result of the broader economic squeeze, and that they’ll bounce back more quickly once the market recovers. EVs and the infrastructure needed to charge them have also been a part of many of the stimulus packages announced by European and Asian governments. Just in the past few weeks, Germany included chargers in its €2.5 billion proposed economic package, and the European Union announced that it’s aiming to have 1 million public chargers by 2025, from fewer than 200,000 today. read more

Monday February 17 2020, The Times

Royal Dutch Shell has thrown its weight behind a Chinese-backed energy storage venture building what is claimed to be Europe’s largest battery in Wiltshire.

The Anglo-Dutch energy group will use a 100-megawatt battery near the village of Minety to provide back-up electricity to the National Grid when supplies of wind and solar power dip. The battery can be charged when electricity is cheap and then discharged at peak times when prices are high.

The project has been bankrolled by CNIC, the Chinese investment fund, and China Huaneng Group, a state utility company that is also constructing the battery. read more

The above extracts are from Trustpilot, Facebook Group: Shell Energy (formerly First Utility) – the worst customer service ever?? and First Utility Reviews

The Shell Energy gripe website is being launched in response to consumer horror stories involving debt collectors and bailiffs, with complaints posted online by outraged Shell Energy customers like the damning examples quoted in the above header.

By John Donovan

Shell and its shareholders will not welcome the news that I am launching another website later this month focussed on Shell. This time the target is Shell Energy, a global brand of rapidly growing importance and value to the parent company – Royal Dutch Shell Plc – in its quest to move away from an increasingly toxic fossil fuel-based business. Part of the gathering flight of ethical investors deserting Big Oil, in Shell’s case a transition into becoming a global energy and broadband company, instead of a dying oil giant. read more

Shell Says We Have to Decarbonize Planet Earth

We have to decarbonize planet earth in the coming decades.

That’s what Ed Daniels, head of strategy at Shell, stated during a presentation at Web Summit on Tuesday in Lisbon, Portugal, which was attended by Rigzone.

“I feel an immense amount of responsibility that our company along with governments and society has to do,” Daniels told audience members during the presentation, which included a Q&A session with Neanda Salvaterra, an energy reporter at The Wall Street Journal.

“I’m simultaneously energized and frightened by the scale of the challenge,” Daniels added. read more

October 18, 2019

Greenlots, a subsidiary of Shell New Energies, has announced its participation in the development of the world’s largest electric vehicle charging network.

Greenlots EV chargers will be installed in Ford’s FordPass Charging network.

The Charging Network will be launched in 2020 and will allow Ford EV drivers to charge seamlessly across all the major charging networks in the US and select regions in Canada.

The network is the first of its kind rollout in the EV market and is to accelerate the adoption of electrified transportation across North America. read more

Just Energy to sell U.K. operations to Shell for C$17M

Oct. 8, 2019 5:45 PM ET|About: Just Energy Group Inc. (JE)|By: Carl Surran, SA News Editor

Just Energy (NYSE:JE) +4.7% after-hours on news it agreed to sell its U.K. operations to Shell Energy Retail Ltd. (RDS.A, RDS.B) for ~C$17M.

JE says the sale of Hudson Energy Supply UK will help narrow its geographic focus and concentrate on its core operations.

In addition, JE says it has identified another C$20M/year in cost savings, to bring total annualized cost savings initiatives announced so far to C$60M.

The company also says the strategic review process initiated in June is ongoing, and it has not set a specific timeframe for the conclusion of the review. read more

Shell Takes 20% Stake in Indian Solar Firm Orb Energy

(Bloomberg) — A Royal Dutch Shell Plc division took a 20% stake in Indian solar firm Orb Energy Pvt Ltd. as part of a drive to deliver a reliable source of electricity to 100 million people in the developing world by 2030.

Orb Energy, based in Bengaluru, south India, provides credit to small and medium sized firms to invest in solar panel systems. Founded in 2006, Orb Energy has sold over 160,000 solar systems in India with a total capacity of 75 megawatts.

“This is a vital and growing sector, with great potential to contribute to the country’s renewable energy ambitions,” Brian Davis, vice president in the Shell Energy Solutions division said in a statement. read more

Shell ‘absolutely’ looking at big Scottish North Sea offshore wind projects

by David McPhee: 06/09/2019, 7:10 am Updated: 06/09/2019, 7:42 am

Shell’s energy transition manager, Joanna Coleman, confirmed last night that the oil and gas giant was “absolutely” targeting the North Sea for future big offshore wind development.

Ms Coleman was representing Shell at Offshore Europe in Aberdeen yesterday to outline her firm’s plans to move to lower carbon and renewable energy in the UK.

She spoke about Shell’s work in developing carbon capture and storage in Peterhead, alongside its plans for hydrogen and electric vehicles.

But she added that her firms “focus” is offshore wind deployment in the UK.

Asked about the Scottish North Sea, Ms Coleman said: “We’ll need to look at what acreage the Crown Estate Scotland puts out to bid and decide which blocks we want to bid on. read more

Matthew Stevens Columnist: 23 August 2019

Shell Australia’s $617 million pitch for electricity trader and generator ERM Powerstands as the most tangible expression yet of the transition mission that the local outpost of the petroleum super major set for itself more than three years ago.

Back in June 2017, in a move that foreshadowed co-ordinated global ambitions in electricity only recently fully enunciated by the legendary mother ship, Shell Australia revealed its strategic hand by establishing an energy trading business in Melbourne. read more

Shell debuts electric vehicle chargers in Singapore, first in Southeast Asia

By Reuters• last updated: 19/08/2019 – 08:13

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell <RDSa.L> is launching electric vehicle chargers at petrol stations in Singapore, its first such foray in Southeast Asia, the company said on Monday.

The electric vehicle charging service, ‘Shell Recharge’, will be available at 10 Shell petrol stations in Singapore by October, this year or about 20% of its retail network in the city-state, the company said in a statement.

It added that the chargers typically provide from 0% to 80% charge in about 30 minutes, and are compatible with most electric vehicles in Singapore. read more

Rooftop solar at Shell units in Europe, Asia to generate 7,500 MWh a year

The panels can result in the avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions of about 4,500 tonne on a CO2-equivalent basis per year, equivalent to taking about 2,600 cars off the road for one year, a statement by the company said.

August 06, 2019, 07:42 IST

New Delhi: Lubricants major Shell on Monday said it is installing solar photovoltaic panels on the roofs of seven of its plants in India, China, Italy, Singapore and Switzerland, which would generate 7,500 MWh of power annually.

The panels can result in the avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions of about 4,500 tonne on a CO2-equivalent basis per year, equivalent to taking about 2,600 cars off the road for one year, a statement by the company said.

Combined, they are expected to generate over 7,500 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity a year, it added. read more

By Irina Slav– Jul 11, 2019, 3:00 PM CDT

Shell has furthered its stated commitment to cleaner electricity by investing in a U.S startup that has developed a blockchain-based platform for energy sharing.

The startup, LOW3 Energy, saidin a press release earlier this week that Shell Ventures and Japanese Sumitomo had made “major investments” in its platform, which “represents a landmark moment for LO3 Energy as we begin to scale our blockchain-based energy networks around the world,” according to chief executive Lawrence Orsini. read more

JULY 5, 2019

TOKYO (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell started selling electricity to business customers in Japan in March, relying on its experiences in North America and Europe to expand its market presence, a spokeswoman for its Japan unit said on Friday.

The Nikkei business daily reported earlier on Friday that Shell is considering residential electricity sales in the future, but the spokeswoman said such a decision has not been made.

“The Japanese electricity market is attractive for Shell as the market’s liberalization is progressing,” she said, but declined to give any numerical business targets. read more

Clara Denina, Stephen Jewkes, Toby Sterling: JUNE 24, 2019 / 4:43PM

LONDON (Reuters) – A domestic consortium set up by Royal Dutch Shell and pension fund manager PGGM has taken a bigger lead in the race for Dutch energy company Eneco as two other contenders have dropped out, sources close to the matter said.

French oil and gas company Total SA and Italy’s electricity giant Enel, which had teamed up with Dutch pension fund manager APG, have both withdrawn their non-binding offers, said the sources.

One of the sources added that APG was now looking for a new partner.

Infrastructure fund Macquarie and Japan’s biggest trading house Mitsubishi Corp are also still in the race for the company estimated by analysts to be worth about 3 billion euros ($3.4 billion), sources said. One said French nuclear energy utility EDF had also made a non-binding offer. read more

With generous dividends and buybacks—and talk of cleaner energy—Royal Dutch Shell looks to boost interest in its shares read more

Shell is to return $125bn over five years through dividends and share buybacks

That’s more than double the $52bn handed between 2011 and 2015

Energy group expects new projects will generate $35billion

By CAMILLA CANOCCHI FOR THISISMONEY.CO.UK

PUBLISHED: 15:03, 4 June 2019 | UPDATED: 16:15, 4 June 2019

Shares in Royal Dutch Shell fell despite the oil and gas giant revealing plans to return $125billion (£99billion) to shareholders over five years through dividends and share buybacks.

This is more than double the $52million (£41billion) handed to shareholders between 2011 and 2015.

Shell said it expects to pay for that with money from new projects, which it expects will generate $35billion, assuming oil remains priced at $60 per barrel. read more

Shell plans to boost returns and become a force in power

LONDON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell outlined plans on Tuesday to boost shareholder returns after 2020, while also increasing spending on oil, gas and power, as it capitalizes on years of cost cutting to prepare for a lower carbon future.

In a strategy update, the Anglo-Dutch energy company said it was on track to deliver on its commitment to sharply increase cash generation and carry out one of the world’s largest share buyback programs of $25 billion by the end of next year.

It then plans to increase payouts to investors through dividends and share buybacks to $125 billion between 2021 and 2025, roughly half of its current market value. That compares with payouts of around $90 billion between 2016 and 2020.

While offering sweeteners to investors, Shell also outlined plans to increase spending in the next decade to grow its gas, oil, renewables and power output. read more

Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A +0.3%) could ramp up acquisitions of electricity producers to achieve its target of becoming the world’s biggest power company by the 2030s, Bernstein analysts say.

Shell must produce 214 terawatt hours of clean power every year by 2035 to become the biggest low-carbon electricity provider, which Bernstein says could be achieved through organic growth, ultimately managing 61 GW of power capacity, but the company probably will want to move faster and expand acquisitions of electricity producers. read more

By Kelly Gilblom: 29 March 2019, 11:13 GMT

*Company likely to expand acquisitions of electricity producers

*Shell must manage 61 gigawatts of clean power in 2030s

Royal Dutch Shell Plc could ramp up acquisitions of electricity producers to achieve its target of becoming the world’s biggest power company by the 2030s, according to analysis by Sanford C Bernstein Ltd.

To become the biggest low-carbon electricity provider, the company must produce 214 terawatt-hours of clean power every year by 2035, the analysis shows. That’s 11 percent more than Egypt, a country of nearly 100 million people, generated last year, according to data from BP Plc. read more

Ed Crooks in New York and Anjli Raval in London: 25 March 2019

On Sunday Royal Dutch Shell, one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, announced that its First Utility retail power business would be rebranded as Shell Energy, with 700,000 households switched to renewable power. Customers will be offered not only cleaner electricity but discounts on fast-charging for their electric vehicles as well as broadband and smart-home technologies. Shell has floated the idea that by the 2030s it could be the largest power company in the world. FULL FT ARTICLE read more

Shell Energy will offer discounts on fuel at Shell petrol stations for its household gas and electricity customer: sPINPEP

Oil giant looking at acquisitions to expand in energy supply market

Royal Dutch Shell has said it will consider “all opportunities” to expand in the UK household gas and electricity supply market, declining to rule out acquiring one of the Big Six suppliers.

The Anglo-Dutch oil giant today rebrands First Utility, the supplier it bought in 2017, as Shell Energy and will start offering discounts on fuel at Shell petrol stations for its household gas and electricity customers as the first step in an ambitious plan to grab market share. read more

By Ron Bousso, Susanna Twidale: March 24, 2019

LONDON (Reuters) – Just over a year after buying First Utility, Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) has rebranded the British household energy supplier and is switching all its customers to renewable electricity as the oil and gas giant seeks to expand its low-carbon business.

The move by the Anglo-Dutch company poses a challenge for Britain’s long-standing retail power suppliers whose profit margins have come under growing pressure due to intense competition and the regulator’s price cap. read more

Jillian Ambrose: 24 MARCH 2019 • 6:57PM

Royal Dutch Shell will begin supplying renewable electricity to more than 700,000 homes in the UK this week as it powers up plans to take become the world’s biggest electricity company.

Under the brand Shell Energy, it will become one of the country’s biggest green power suppliers overnight when it replaces First Utility, a year after acquiring the “big six” challenger brand.

Customers will automatically switch to green energy at no extra cost.

“On Monday morning more than 700,000 homes will wake up, turn on the lights, and switch on the kettle, using renewable electricity,” said Colin Crooks, the chief executive of Shell Energy Retail. read more

Angela Macdonald-Smith Energy reporter: Mar 20, 2019

The head of Europe’s biggest battery producer says the company’s takeover by oil giant Shell will give it the “bold” presence needed to thrive when the sector takes off in 18 to 24 months, when faster growth rates and tougher competition will prove a competitive test.

“We are in the very beginning of the storage market worldwide,” Sonnen chief executive Christoph Ostermann said during a visit to Australia this week. “We expect to reach an inflection point very, very soon and we have to prepare for that, secure financing for that and enhance our global footprint.” read more