Linda Castaneda’s Post

Shell CEO: Fossil fuel enhanced focus while axing cleantech doesn't alter “urgent climate action,” just a strategy change. On October 17, 2023, CEO Wael Sawan, presented a virtual “A conversation with Wael” to alleviate anxieties among employees.   During the virtual conversation, Sawan claimed the strategy shift was necessary because of the affordability of clean energy sources and the need to improve investor returns. What is he talking about? Renewables are now the least expensive energy sources for power generation. Electric vehicle sales have reached their inflection point and will likely hit 50% of vehicle sales in the EU and China around 2025. North American EV demand is outpacing supply, while a North American tsunami of investments in EV and battery production is underway. The first cultural shift came under direction of the previous CEO, Ben van Beurden, to, among other things, divest of $32 billion of fossil fuel assets; invest massively in acquiring clean tech assets; and curtail corporate emissions 20% by 2035 and 50% by 2050. A February 2021 Shell press release announced that Shell’s corporate-wide carbon emissions peaked in 2018 and its oil production peaked in 2019. It affirmed the firm would pursue divestments averaging $4 billion a year; invest $2-3 billion annually for Renewables and Energy Solutions to become a world leader in clean power as a service; and offer 500,000 charging points by 2025. The Sawan October 17, 2023 assertions are unlikely to transfigure the anxiety of clean tech staff and many other employees across the company.  The greenwashing is self-evident. With the report below on the October 17 virtual conversation, I am currently completing my article on Shell’s two cultural shifts, one towards a green transition, and the other to back to business-as-usual. Benjamin Casteillo Alexander Chikunov Jan Rosenow Chip Fletcher, PhD The Climate Reality Project https://lnkd.in/ezm5zNkW.

We are short of money for the Energy Transition ... ... Good news is "Oil and Gas Companies Have Cash Reserves for Strategic Investments" ... ... But it is not that easy ... "83% of investors advocate for disciplined capex expansion, and 70% prioritize dividend growth in capital allocation". #BCGOnEnergy #energytransition #supplychain #decarbonization

Wood Mackenzie has published an exclusive white paper: bit.ly/48bCN44   Dive into the intricate landscape of big decisions, consolidation, and sustainable growth within the corporate oil and gas sector. The industry faces a critical juncture in 2024, where companies must navigate challenges posed by COP28, the energy transition, and global geopolitical shifts.    Despite the increased focus on sustainability, many NOCs are still committed to growing upstream capacity, a strategy bolstered by energy security concerns over the last 24 months. However, the politicisation of the energy transition poses challenges, potentially leading to an unstable fiscal and regulatory environment as election cycles unfold in the US and Europe.    Download your free copy and access these insights: bit.ly/48bCN44     #OilAndGas #WoodMackenzie #StrategicDecisions

I recently sat down with Matthew Harwood, Chief Strategy Officer at Climate Investment (CI) on The Energy Council's latest Investor Insights Episode. During the episode, Matthew explores how are investors across the capital stack working together to de-risk and scale-up new energy & decarbonisation technologies and get comfortable with new risk profiles. He talks about how, in order to achieve a successful transition, oil & gas companies have an important role to play as expert technicians, by working in close partnership with innovators to adopt their solutions in their supply chains. He also explains how specialist investors like Climate Investment have a role to play in matching market adopters with the right solutions, and in getting the right solutions into the sectors and regions that can benefit materially. Check out the full episode: https://lnkd.in/e3BVRUvT #decarbonisation #innovation #emissionsreduction #energytransition #sustainability #oilandgasindustry

Everywhere you look net zero seems to be a looming priority, but in recent months several major companies have scaled back their green plans. I enjoyed writing this piece for Gas Strategies, which explores the financial and geopolitical reasons behind this trend. Many thanks to Bob Ward Sarim S. and Michael Tholen for sharing their insights on the factors driving this shift. https://lnkd.in/gFyeapU2

https://lnkd.in/gk-fFPpP Williams This article ties nicely to an article from Williams a few weeks back   Blog – ESG and Sustainability – How Natural Gas can play a key role with transitioning to Net Zero – Williams Company - https://lnkd.in/gUCfzBKD

So BlackRock, JP Morgan, etc are leaving the Climate Action 100+ — and "natural asset companies" are blocked from joining the NYSE. (Today David Gelles discusses this in his New York Time Climate Forward newsletter, to which you should subscribe!) My question: how do the techno optimists understand these market events? Is Republican opposition to green Capitalism only political signaling? Or are members of the GOP simply doing the bidding of their fossil-energy-interest donors? Or is there a deeper, structural issue here? ( In that regard, this paper is interesting: https://lnkd.in/eUG6VVSr ) In any case, actual events certainly complicate the ideological and mistaken narrative that fossil-energy demand is sure to wane now that renewable energy outcompetes fossil energy on price alone.

What's on CEOs' minds? Read about the big themes that were debated on the stage recently at our fifth EMEA Global Energy & Natural Resources Summit in The Edge: https://okt.to/fdPQRx

What's on CEOs' minds? Read about the big themes that were debated on the stage recently at our fifth EMEA Global Energy & Natural Resources Summit in The Edge: https://okt.to/0GwVgQ

The energy transition shapes oil and gas companies' portfolios, compelling mergers among similar firms or forcing corporate leaders to diversify investments into sustainable energy production and, better yet, technological innovation. Approaching the crossroads, Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy seek to bridge the transition by merging into the largest U.S. gas producer, but eventually, they will have to continue merging or develop a sustainable energy transition-framed strategy. Public policy, such as the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, should reward the latter. https://lnkd.in/eD2Hcx2K?