Annual profits at energy giant Shell have surged to $17bn as it was boosted by higher oil and gas prices.
The current cost of supplies (CCS) earnings figure compared with a $19.9bn loss a year ago and Shell said it now plans to reward investors with an $8.5bn share buyback programme and 4% hike in dividends for the current quarter.
Chief executive Ben van Beurden said it had been a “momentous year” for Shell, with the company also shedding its Anglo-Dutch dual corporate structure and relocating its tax residence from the Netherlands to the UK.
But the figures prompted Labour to reiterate its call for a windfall tax on North Sea energy firms to support hard-pressed consumers struggling with their bills.
Stripping out one-off costs, Shell’s CCS earnings were $19.3bn for the year, up from $4.8bn in 2020.
For the fourth quarter, earnings were $11.1bn compared to a loss of $4.5bn a year earlier, or $6.4bn on an underlying basis, up from $393m in the last three months of 2020.
It comes at a time when as prices on wholesale markets are running at about four times the level of a year ago – with the spike pushing up household energy bills as well as squeezing small any small energy suppliers out of business.
Shell was able to earn $8.88 for every thousand cubic feet of gas sold in the fourth quarter, up from $4.31 just six months earlier.
Demand for oil has also bounced back after a slump during the pandemic, with a barrel of Brent crude currently costing around $90 – about 50% higher than this time last year.
That has pushed fuel pump prices in the UK up to record levels.
Mr van Beurden said: “We delivered very strong financial performance in 2021, and our financial strength and discipline underpin the transformation of our company.”
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: “Following the pandemic squalls which decimated the oil price and indeed profits, Shell has returned to form as it finds itself awash with cash.”
Source : skynews
