A boon for global Britain, Shell’s move back to the UK could come at a cost to global warming
On November 15th Shell offered shareholders some badly needed simplification. It asked them to vote next month for a proposal to ditch a dual Anglo-Dutch share structure, haul the headquarters back to Britain, and scrap the Royal Dutch name. It marks a homecoming of sorts. The original moniker dates back to the 19th century, when the company’s forebear, Marcus Samuel, dealt in sea shells along the Thames. But the reaction in parts of the Netherlands has been apoplectic.
Simplification looks like the handiwork of Andrew Mackenzie, Shell’s new chairman, who oversaw a restructuring of, the Anglo-Australian miner that he previously ran. But it has a financial logic, too. Under the dual-share structure, Shell’s Dutchshares could be bought back economically. That capped buy-backs at $2.5bn a quarter. Oswald Clint of Bernstein, an investment firm, says the maximum could now rise to $5bn.
There are other potential side-effects. The Netherlands has dealt some harsh blows to Shell recently. They include a court judgment in The Hague ordering Shell to reduce its worldwide emissions—part of which the company is appealing against . A Dutch pension fund,, stunned Shell last month by saying it would sell its shares in the firm as part of efforts to divest from fossil fuels.
The British government cheered the relocation announcement. Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary, called it “a clear vote of confidence in the British economy”. But the boon to global Britain could come at a cost to global warming. In the coming months the government is expected to decide whether to allow drilling of an oilfield called Cambo off the coast of Scotland—a litmus test for the future of North Sea oil. Cambo is part-owned by Shell.
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