Royal Dutch Shell CEO to Call for 'Carbon Pricing'
October 05 2015 - 8:50PM
Dow Jones News
LONDON—The chief executive of oil firm Royal Dutch Shell PLC
will tell a gathering of industry executives Tuesday that the world
must find economic ways to reduce its dependence on the most
polluting fossil fuels, calling on governments to institute an
effective system for pricing carbon.
According to excerpts of Ben van Beurden's speech to the Oil
& Money conference in London seen by The Wall Street Journal,
the boss of one of the world's biggest oil and gas companies is
promoting a carbon-pricing plan that will encourage investment in
renewables and favor cleaner-burning natural gas over more
carbon-intensive coal.
The system of carbon pricing generally taxes polluters, which
then pass the costs onto consumers and can lower demand. Another
system is a so-called cap-and-trade plan that would set some limits
on what polluters could emit.
The call for a carbon-pricing system comes as the energy
industry positions itself ahead of United Nations climate-change
talks that could result in an agreement to curb emissions. Shell,
together with many of its European counterparts, has been vocal in
promoting natural gas—an increasingly significant portion of their
output—over coal ahead of the December talks in Paris.
Shell itself is in the midst of completing a $70 billion
acquisition of BG Group PLC that will make liquefied natural gas
one of the primary focuses of its business.
"Gas is a fossil fuel, yes, but a crucial one for the building
of a low-carbon future," Mr. van Beurden will tell executives and
government officials at the conference, adding that oil and gas
will remain important parts of the energy system for years to
come.
The Shell chief will also address the slump in oil prices over
the last 15 months, acknowledging that the crude market may remain
under pressure for some time.
The company has already announced plans to cut back its spending
and focus on reducing costs. Operating costs are expected to fall
by around $4 billion over the course of the year and Shell's
spending on exploration and development is set 20% lower than last
year.
"Shell is pulling out all the stops to safeguard our dividends
and buyback program, and to keep our investment program steady for
the future," Mr. van Beurden will say.
Write to Sarah Kent at sarah.kent@wsj.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 05, 2015 20:35 ET (00:35 GMT)
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