Shell Surprise Shows Profit Squeeze Even at $100 Crude: Energy
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Less than three weeks after taking charge at Europe’s largest oil company, Ben van Beurden’s challenge is already clear: get a grip on spending.
Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s surprise announcement yesterday that fourth-quarter earnings would fall to the lowest since 2009 showed the rising cost of developing new fields has cut into profit. While Brent oil prices have spent three straight years above $100 a barrel, getting crude out of the ground is only getting more expensive.