Oil & Gas

The CEO of Shell received £7.94 million despite the company lowering its net zero targets. The new targets focus on reducing the carbon intensity of products sold, rather than overall emissions reduction. This move has drawn criticism from environmentalists, who highlight a potential conflict between profit and climate action.

Last year, Shell's chief executive, Wael Sawan, received nearly £8 million as the company cut executive pay following a drop in energy prices. This total pay packet included a base salary of £1.40 million, an annual bonus of £2.71 million, and a £2.60 million long-term incentive payment, among other payments. While this amount is higher than what van Beurden received in 2021, it is less than the £9.7 million the former chief received after a profitable 2022.

Both Shell and BP aim to please investors with bumper buyback programs planned for the next few months. Shell's announcement of its new energy transition plan for 2024 coincides with these efforts. The plan aims to reduce the "carbon intensity" of its products sold by 15-20 percent by 2030 compared to 2016 levels, a slight shift from the previously announced firm 20 percent target.

Shell has also set a new ambition to reduce the emissions created by its oil products by 15-20 percent by 2030 compared to 2021. However, Shell has dropped a plan to reduce net carbon intensity, i.e, the emissions produced by each unit of energy sold, by 45 percent by 2035 due to uncertainties in the pace of change in the energy transition. This decision reflects a strategic shift towards focusing on carbon intensity reductions in product sales rather than overall emissions reduction.