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Shell profit jump sparks calls for windfall tax rise

Wendy McCague — Thu, 27 Oct 2022 11:50:57 +0000

Oil giant Shell has added nearly $10 billion in extra profit to its balance sheet as gas prices remain high.

The business said its adjusted earnings more than doubled to $9.5bn (£8.2bn) in the three months to the end of September when compared with the year before.

But profits are down compared with the company’s second quarter, when it made $11.5bn (£9.9bn), as the price of oil slowly began to fall after months of multi-year highs due to the war in Ukraine.

“We are delivering robust results at a time of ongoing volatility in global energy markets,” said chief executive Ben van Beurden.

Shell is now nine months into what promises to be the company’s most profitable year ever, barring an unlikely major collapse in oil and gas prices over the next two months.

The business was already benefiting from a global economy that had reopened after the pandemic and was desperate for energy to fuel its growth.

Then Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an unprovoked attack on Ukraine. This pushed European gas prices to all-time highs and the price of oil soared internationally.

The months-long energy crisis led then-chancellor Rishi Sunak in May to introduce a windfall tax on oil and gas companies operating in the North Sea.

But that has not stopped Shell from handing billions of dollars to its shareholders this year.

On October 27 it announced plans to return another $4bn (£3.5bn) to shareholders by buying back shares over the next three months, and said it will also increase the dividend by 15%.

It takes the total payout to Shell shareholders to $26bn (£22.4bn) so far this year.

The figures prompted Greenpeace to call for a “proper tax” on the energy giant’s profits, which it said could help insulate thousands of homes.

“While Shell continues to bank billions, how many more households need to be forced into fuel poverty before the Government wakes up? The only way to address the interlocking cost of living, energy security and climate crises is a street-by-street rollout of home insulation combined with a massive lift in ambition for renewable energy,” the campaign group’s UK senior climate adviser, Charlie Kronick, said.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: “The Conservative Government’s refusal to properly tax these eye-watering profits is an insult to families struggling to pay their energy bills.

“Even the CEO of Shell has admitted that oil and gas companies should be taxed more to help protect vulnerable households.”

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Entrepreneur Ennis aims to fuel HGV fleets for less with cleantech venture

Linda Stewart — Mon, 26 Sep 2022 09:20:06 +0000

Having previously disrupted the energy sector with Vayu, Irish entrepreneur Tony Ennis is hoping to do it again with a new cleantech venture aiming to fuel HGV fleets at a significantly lower price than traditional fossil fuels.

The businessman plans to build a series of bio-methane refineries in Britain and Ireland through a company he chairs called Manby BGE as part of a projected €1 million spend.

The refineries will break down organic matter such as animal waste through a process called anaerobic digestion, with all gas produced reserved specifically for use by the heavy goods transportation sector.

Ennis is also planning for 2050 Group, a second business he chairs, to establish a nationwide chain of refuelling stations rather than selling the bio-compressed natural gas (Bio-CNG) that Manby BGE produces through other distributors.

Ennis told the Business Post that Manby BGE is already going through the planning process for its first bio-gas refinery in Lincolnshire at a projected cost of €150 million.

The group intends to develop four more sites in Britain and two in Ireland, with Ennis claiming there is strong interest from backers in the project. Each refinery would be capable of producing up to 6000 cubic metres of gas every hour, more than enough to fuel 1,000 HGVs operating 24/7, 365 days a year.

Ennis previously founded Vayu in 2003, which was the first independent firm to get a gas supply licence in Ireland and won 30 per cent of the industrial and commercial market, before he sold his stake for €10 million in 2011.

He said Manby GBE’s plan is to build up to 12 sites in the next decade.

“We’ve lots of other investors who want in on this. There was already huge interest in the plan before the war in Ukraine but the impact of that on energy prices, combined with the need for businesses to do more on the ESG front, means that what we are proposing is proving to be very attractive,” he said.

“This is very much a means of ensuring security of supply while also accelerating the green agenda.”

Ennis believes there is a strong opportunity to get truck drivers using fuel that is cheaper that fossil fuels and less damaging to the environment.

“Forget about hydrogen. Bio-CNG is the only real commercially viable alternative to diesel for HGVs. One truck consumes more energy in a week than your average household does in a year. HGVs account for just 5 per cent of all vehicles on European road, but with responsibility for 25 per cent of all emissions,” he said.

The planned refineries will also process biodegradable waste to extract CO2, which will be sold to the drinks industry. The remaining bio-gas can then be used for the transport sector or injected into the gas network, with a third product, fertiliser, that can be returned to farmers for use on their lands.

Currently, there are four publicly available CNG/Bio-CNG stations in Ireland and a small number of private ones. Research undertaken by 2050 Group estimates that close to 50 stations would be able to supply 80 per cent of the fuel needs for HGVs. The company is currently looking at developing up to 20 stations itself, in order to speed up the availability of bio-CNG gas for transportation.

2050 Group already has a Bio-CNG fuelled delivery truck contracted to Spar owner BWG Foods. Ennis said HGVs can run at a cost of €0.43 per km, versus diesel with a 10 per cent biofuel blend, which costs €0.76 per km.

“Ireland per capita has the most amount of agricultural waste that can be turned into fuel in Europe, but we’ve probably done least to take advantage of this. In other countries, there have been moves towards using Bio-CNG for fuelling trucks, but we’ve not followed. We have a huge opportunity, and I’m determined to lead the way in addressing this,” Ennis said.

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Gas and electricity bills rise by more than 40% in past year

Linda Stewart — Thu, 08 Sep 2022 08:47:40 +0000

The average electricity bill has gone up by €480 in the year to August, while the average gas bill has gone up by €410, according to new figures from the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities.

In August, the average electricity bill was €1,600 a year while the average gas bill was €1,380.

In August 2021, the average electricity bill was €1,120 a year while the average gas bill was €970.

That means the average increase in electricity bills was 43% while the average increase in gas bills was 42%.

The CRU does not have figures for dual fuel bundled accounts, which normally include certain discounts.

These latest figures do not include the recently announced price increases from energy companies which take effect from 1 October.

The increases range from 27% to 45% increases in the price of electricity and between 37.5% and 46.3% increases in the price of gas, depending on supplier.

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Marvel star Mark Ruffalo teams up with climate protesters opposing Shannon LNG terminal for US fracked gas

Linda Stewart — Fri, 05 Aug 2022 09:35:10 +0000

Hollywood actor and anti-fracking advocate Mark Ruffalo has thrown his weight behind the campaign against Shannon LNG.

America’s New Fortress Energy is behind proposals for the onshore liquefied natural gas facility with a deep water jetty, storage tanks and gas-fired power station at Ballylongford, Kerry.

But their plan to bring fracked gas from the US to Ireland has been mired in controversy since the High Court quashed their planning application in 2020.

The state backed away from the plans in its 2020 programme for government but a new application has divided political views since Russia’s war on Ukraine sparked gas supply fears.

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said in January a new application would not be blocked if approved by planners and has since met with the firm behind the project, but Environment Minister and Green Party leader, Eamon Ryan, told An Bord Pleanála it shouldn’t be permitted “under any circumstances”.

This week activists from Ireland and the US have been gathering at a week-long climate camp in Kerry to voice their opposition to the plan.

Speaking out in support of the protesters, Hulk star Mark Ruffalo said: “I’m proud to support the Climate Camp in Ireland that is raising awareness about the dangers of the proposed Shannon LNG terminal that would import gas from Pennsylvania and further devastate those communities.”

The actor says he lives near the proposed LNG export terminal along the Delaware River.

“Ireland rightly banned fracking because of the environmental and public health impacts and should reject this terminal for those very same reasons,” he added.

In their application for planning permission, Shannon LNG propose a 600 megawatt gas-fired electricity generator, an LNG terminal and batteries to store up to 120 megawatts of power. The terminal would import natural gas that has been cooled for the purposes of transport. A floating plant will reheat the liquid so that it becomes gas. From there it will be supplied to the power plant and national supply network.

The site notice that Shannon LNG put up says that the terminal will be able to supply up to 22.6 million cubic metres of natural gas per day.

An Bord Pleanála is due to make a decision on the €650m plant in September.

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G7 considering options to restrict profits on Russian oil

Linda Stewart — Wed, 03 Aug 2022 09:06:19 +0000

The G7 is looking at all options to prevent Russia from profiteering from high energy prices, including blocking the transportation of Russian oil unless it was purchased at or below a set price, its foreign ministers have said.

In a statement released by the UK, they said they were considering: “a comprehensive prohibition of all services that enable transportation of Russian seaborne crude oil and petroleum products globally, unless the oil is purchased at or below a price to be agreed in consultation with international partners.”

“In considering this and other options, we will also consider mitigation mechanisms alongside our restrictive measures to ensure the most vulnerable and impacted countries maintain access to energy markets including from Russia,” the statement added.

The G7 group of wealthy developed economies is made up of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain and the US.

Member countries are exploring ways to plug energy shortages and tackle soaring prices while sticking to their climate commitments, amid a standoff with Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.

“As we phase out Russian energy from our domestic markets, we will seek to develop solutions that reduce Russian revenues from hydrocarbons, support stability in global energy markets and minimise negative economic impacts, especially on low- andmiddle-income countries,” the statement said.

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