A group that won a victory over energy major Shell last year with a Dutch court order that it deepen greenhouse gas cuts, has warned the company’s board of possible personal responsibility if it fails to implement the verdict.
Last year, Shell was ordered by the Hague District Court to reduce its carbon emissions by 45% by 2030 compared to 2019 levels. This landmark decision could have important implications for all energy companies worldwide.
Shell appeals against the ruling.
The group Friends of the Earth/Milieudefensie said it sent a letter to the company’s boards and individual representatives on Sunday, including CEO Ben van Beurden, saying it was not acting to implement the verdict.
“Shell has appealed, but the court declared the judgment provisionally enforceable, which means the necessary climate action cannot be suspended pending the appeal,” the group said in its letter, a copy of which was seen by Reuters.
“Milieudefensie believes that Shell’s directors risk future personal liability by failing to take action in line with the … goal of almost halving worldwide CO2 emissions by 2030.”
Shell, which claims it is following the ruling in most aspects, could not be reached immediately for comment.
The company appealed the March decision and argued that it had been wrongly held responsible to emissions it couldn’t control.
Shell’s targets include cutting its emissions by more than 50% by 2030, though its strategy includes using carbon storage and offsets rather than outright reductions.
(Reporting by Toby Sterling, editing by Robert Birsel
Was this article of value?
These are just a few of the articles you might like.
Are you interested in Personal Lines?
Get automatic alerts about this topic