Van Beurden SHELL CEO
SHELL DEFECTOR (when was court loss?]
https://news.yahoo.com/1-shell-quit-u-refining-105931571.html
reuters
UPDATE 7-Citing climate differences, Shell walks away from U.S. refining lobby
By Ron Bousso
April 2, 2019
* Shell to leave AFPM in 2020 over climate "misalignment"
* Shell releases first report on links with industry groups
* Investor welcomes report as "industry first" (Adds comment from French oil major Total)
By Ron Bousso
LONDON, April 2 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell Plc on Tuesday became the first major oil and gas company to announce plans to leave a leading U.S. refining lobby due to disagreement on climate policies, citing its support for the goals of the Paris climate agreement.
In its first review of its association with 19 key industry groups, Shell said it had found "material misalignment" over climate policy with the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) and would quit the body in 2020.
The review is part of Shell's drive to increase transparency and show investors it is in line with the 2015 Paris climate agreement's goals to limit global warming by reducing carbon emissions to a net zero by the end of the century.
It is the latest sign of how investor pressure on oil companies, particularly in Europe, is leading to changes in their behavior around climate. Last year, Shell caved in to investor pressure over climate change, setting out plans to introduce industry-leading carbon emissions targets linked to executive pay.
Its chief executive, Ben van Beurden, has since repeatedly urged oil and gas producers to take action over climate and pollution, staking out a more radical position than the heads of other major oil companies.
"AFPM has not stated support for the goal of the Paris Agreement. Shell supports the goal of the Paris Agreement," the Anglo-Dutch company said in its decision.
"The need for urgent action in response to climate change has become ever more obvious since the signing of the Paris Agreement in 2015. As a result, society's expectations in this area have changed, and Shell's views have also evolved," van Beurden said in the report.
The company has disagreed with AFPM on a number of issues for some time, according to two lobbying sources. Shell said it also disagreed with AFPM's opposition to a price on carbon and action on low-carbon technologies.
Shell and AFPM have also been at odds in recent months over regulation over the use of renewable fuels. While Shell and other large refiners invested in cleaner fuel technology, AFPM has fought hard against standards requiring refiners to blend or subsidize the blending of biofuels into the gasoline pool - saying it hurts independent refiners.
Shell and rivals Exxon and BP have in recent years left the American Legislative Exchange Council, a conservative political group, over its stance on climate change.
AFPM Chief Executive Chet Thompson thanked Shell for its "longstanding collaboration."
"We will also continue working on behalf of the refining and petrochemical industries to advance policies that ensure reliable and affordable access to fuels and petrochemicals, while being responsible stewards of the environment," Thompson said in a statement.
AFPM counts around 300 U.S. and international members includingExxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp, BP Plc and Total SAthat operate 110 refineries and 229 petrochemical plants, according to its 2018 annual report.
French oil major Total said in a statement to Reuters that consensus required by organizations such as AFPM does not always reflect its position, and that it regularly monitors the relevance of its participation.
"In this case, Total takes a pro-active approach in order to convince its peers, particularly on climate issues. In case of differing points of view, Total publicly defends its position, and is ready to reconsider its participation in case of disagreement," the company said.
Total said it was fully aware of climate issues, has publicly recognized them and takes them into its strategy.
Shell's review was welcomed by Adam Matthews, director of ethics and engagement for the Church of England Pensions Board, which invests in Shell and led discussions with the company over its climate policy.
"This is an industry first," Matthews said. "With this review Shell have set the benchmark for best practice on corporate climate lobbying not just within oil and gas but across all industries. The challenge now is for others to follow suit."
WALK AWAY
Shell also found "some" misalignment with nine other trade associations, including the American Petroleum Institute, the oil and gas industry's main lobby.
Shell said that while it had some climate-related differences with theAPI, it welcomed the lobby's advocacy on a range of state and federal issues such as trade and transport, as well as the API's efforts to reduce methane emissions.
Shell said it will continue to engage with the API and other groups over climate policies and monitor their alignment.
Shell last month urged President Donald Trump's administration to tighten restrictions on emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, instead of weakening them as planned.
(Reporting by Ron Bousso; Additional reporting by Jarrett Renshaw in New York and Bate Felix in Paris; Editing by Louise Heavens, Emelia Sithole-Matarise, Lisa Shumaker and Leslie Adler)
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/Shell-warns-U-S-trade-groups-it-may-leave-over-16084555.php
ENERGY
Shell threatens to leave US trade groups over climate disagreements
Paul Takahashi Staff writer
April 8, 2021
Shell’s move reassessing its trade group memberships comes as the European oil giant moves from its longtime fossil fuels business to meet its goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
European oil major Royal Dutch Shell on Wednesday urged U.S. oil and gas trade groups to take stronger positions in the fight against climate change under the threat of leaving them.
The Netherlands-based oil major took aim at the American Petroleum Institute, the Texas Oil & Gas Association and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, pushing them to support and advocate for climate policies in line with the Paris climate agreement. The 2015 agreement aims to limit the rise in the average global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
Shell’s move reassessing its trade group memberships comes as the European oil giant moves from its longtime fossil fuels business to meet its goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
“We must be confident that our participation in industry associations is consistent with our views on climate action,” Van Beurden said. “Our memberships should strengthen and not undermine our support of the goal of the Paris Agreement and the global drive to achieve net-zero emissions.”
A BALANCE: API says U.S. must grow oil and gas while reducing emissions
API and the U.S. oil and gas industry face mounting pressure from their European members, which have moved aggressively over the past year to address climate change. Shell, Total and BP are investing heavily in wind and solar power, as well as electric vehicle charging stations, to prepare for a low-carbon future.Their largest American counterparts, Chevron and Exxon Mobil, have been slower to adopt renewables,instead working to reduce carbon emissions from their oil and gas operations through investments in carbon capture and storage technology.
Shell said API, the largest U.S. oil and gas trade association, has not stated publicly that it supports net-zero emissions, even though its chief executive said in January that the group supports the ambitions of the Paris Agreement. The company urged API to explicitly support the goals of the Paris Agreement, carbon pricing and direct regulation of methane emissions, a powerful greenhouse gas.
“Shell continues to urge API to take a more proactive and constructive approach to climate-related policy and advocacy, in line with the goal of the Paris Agreement,” the company said.
API spokeswoman Bethany Aronhalt said that the oil and gas industry is tackling climate change by working to reduce emissions while at the same time incentivizing lower-carbon innovations.
PULLING THE REINS: API president criticizes energy transition as moving too fast
Royal Dutch Shell chief executive Ben van Beurden
“The scope of this challenge is big enough for a variety of solutions, and every company has a unique approach,” Aronhalt said in an email. “As an association representing 600 companies of varying sizes and segments of the industry, we know there is more that unites us than divides us, and each member brings an important voice to our advocacy efforts. We look forward to continuing to partner with Shell to advance innovative solutions for a lower carbon future and ensure API is at the forefront of the debate over how to address climate change while maintaining access to affordable, reliable energy around the world.”
Pressure is mounting on API and other oil and gas trade groups to change their views on climate policies.
Total in January said it will leave API over “certain divergences” in approaches climate change. The French oil major, which has a significant presence in Houston, said it disagreed with API’s opposition to electric vehicle subsidies and its endorsement of political candidates who argued against U.S. participation in the Paris climate agreement.
Total is developing 16 solar farms in the U.S., including nine in Texas, to achieve its net-zero greenhouse gas emissions goals and to generate 40 percent of its sales from renewable power by 2050.
HISTORIC MOVE: Shell admits its oil production is now on the decline
BP, which also has ambitions to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, said in January that it is monitoring its membership in trade associations, particularly those it views as being only “partially aligned” with the company on climate-related issues.The company, however, said it remains committed to trying to influence those associations from within and will give an update on its memberships by the middle of this year.
Shell said it sees many benefits of its memberships in the trade associations, and believes that it is more effective working on climate change policies as a member of an association rather than on the outside. But it warned that in cases where it finds “material misalignment” with an association, it will not hesitate to reassess its membership. Shell in 2019 left the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers association after it found substantial disagreements with the group over climate policies.
“When we see little possibility of change, we are prepared to walk away,” Van Beurden said.
paul.takahashi@chron.com
twitter.com/paultakahashi
no lnx
sust bix beat
Shell filed appeal against landmark Dutch climate ruling
Reuters
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LONDON, March 29 (Reuters) - Energy major Shell (SHEL.L) has filed its appeal against a Dutch court ruling that ordered the oil, gas and fuel producer to cut its emissions faster in a landmark win for activists turning to courts to force climate action.
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While Shell had set itself a target to reach net zero carbon neutrality by 2050, its intermediate targets were based on emissions intensity, which could in theory allow the group to increase fossil fuel output. read more
In last May's ruling on the case brought by seven groups including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth Netherlands, the court said that Shell must cut emissions faster and reduce its absolute emissions by 45% by 2030. read more
Shell said at the time of the ruling that it would appeal. In a post on LinkedIn, Marjan van Loon, Shell's Netherlands President, said the appeal was filed on March 22.
The vast majority of Shell's emissions are so-called Scope 3 emissions from the use of its products by customers, such as when gasoline is combusted in a car or jet fuel on a plane.
Shell Chief Executive Ben van Beurden has argued that Shell can reach net zero only if society as a whole moves to net zero.
"The judgment holds Shell responsible for reducing the emissions of its customers from the use of its products," he said. "We question how Shell can have a legal obligation to reduce carbon emissions we do not control from customers who are not under a similar legal obligation to reduce their emissions.
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"If we decided to stop selling petrol, it would not mean that people would buy less petrol. Customers would buy it elsewhere."
Reporting by Shadia Nasralla and Kirstin Ridley Editing by David Goodman
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
4 22 no lnx ggl news
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