Shell plans to sell shale oil assets in Texas

Royal Dutch Shell is studying plans to divest its shale oil assets in Texas. The possible sale would cover part or all of Shell’s position in the US Permian Basin, largely located in Texas, which last year accounted for about 6 percent of the British – Dutch company’s total oil and gas production.

According to the sources, the entire interest would be worth over $ 10 billion.

In Texas, Shell mainly extracts shale oil from the soil by means of ‘fracking’, in which the use of chemicals leads to high CO₂ emissions.

At the end of May, a court in The Hague imposed an obligation on Shell to reduce its CO₂ emissions by 45 percent by 2030 compared to 2019. Should Shell withdraw from Texas, the realization of this imposed obligation is likely to be soon in sight.

Last week, Ben van Beurden said in response to the statement that “substantial, but measured steps” will be taken by Shell in the coming years. The top man still expects to appeal the court’s ruling.