Dutch judge overturns ruling in historic climate case on appeal: Shell not required to reduce emissions

Shell growing in August 2021 on application against the judge’s ruling. The company said, among other things, that one company alone cannot be responsible for climate change. CEO Ben van Beurden then highlighted Shell’s ambition to become a “net zero emissions” energy company by 2050.

But Shell now has a new CEO, Wael Sawan. Instead of reducing its emissions, the company has lowered its climate targets from 2021. It now wants to emit 15 to 20 percent less greenhouse gases in 2030 compared to 2016. Under the previous CEO, this was 45 percent by 2035. Shell also wants to increase gas production.

According to Sawaen, Shell’s climate targets made it less attractive to investors. “Stable investments must also be financially stable, and they were not always like that. That led to a low valuation on the stock exchange,” he said in an interview with the Dutch newspaper NRC. Shell believes it is the government’s responsibility to treat all energy companies fairly.