Shell faces showdown over climate after £68bn profits

Shell faces a tense annual general meeting that could be dominated by clashes over climate action after the oil major saw a record year of profits. The company will probably see conflicting pressures at the meeting tomorrow as investors look to capitalise on record oil and gas profits while shareholder activists push for faster action on climate crisis issues.

- REBECCA SPEARE-COLE

Protesters are also expected to gather outside the venue at the Excel Centre in east London. Investors will vote on pay packages for 2022, including that of outgoing chief executive Ben van Beurden, who took home £9.7m, including a £7.5m bonus – a jump of more than 50 per cent from the previous year. The AGM will also be the first time that new boss Wael Sawan, who has worked at Shell since the 1990s, deals with shareholders as chief executive.

Meanwhile, shareholder activist group Follow This has filed a resolution calling for Shell to tighten its 2030 reductions targets for emissions on the products it sells. The resolution has been backed by proxy adviser PIRC, which has also called for shareholders to vote against reappointing the company’s chair, Sir Andrew Mackenzie, and oppose its annual report for failing to address climate risks by setting adequate targets.