Oil giant Shell doubles its quarterly profits to $10.8bn after the Iran war sends oil prices soaring
Wael Sawan, pictured in May, as Greenpeace's Philip Evans accused Shell executives of "popping champagne on the deck of a sinking planet" over the results.A Shell service station like those whose soaring profits CEO Wael Sawan credited to "relentless operational performance" amid nine months of US-Israeli conflict disrupting global energy supplies.
Shares climbed more than 3% on Thursday morning to an all-time high, as the FTSE 100 giant unveiled a $5bn share buyback programme over the coming three months, a sharp jump from the $3bn returned to investors last quarter. Chief executive Wael Sawan said the results reflected Shell's 'relentless focus on operational performance' amid what he called 'continued severe disruption to the global energy system.'
Chancellor John Healey chose NOT to raise windfall taxes on oil firms in Wednesday's budget, despite rising household fuel costs.
Greenpeace's Philip Evans said executives are 'popping champagne on the deck of a sinking planet' while families pay with their 'lives and pay-cheques.'
