Shell’s Dividend Cut Shows This Time Is Different for Big Oil
- CEO questions the industry’s decades-old financial playbook
- Oil demand may never recover to pre-pandemic levels, firm says
Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg
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When the boss of Royal Dutch Shell Plc slashed his dividend on Thursday, he didn’t just shock investors. He tore up the industry’s financial playbook.
For decades Big Oil has used the strength of a large balance sheet to borrow money when the going gets tough and keep investors sweet until the next upward cycle.