Dutch-British oil and gas group Royal Dutch Shell wants to be fully British on paper. On Monday, the company announced that the company will offer the change to its shareholders. The head office will also be moved to the UK.
The Dutch government’s reaction was an “unpleasant surprise” to Shell’s announcement, outgoing Economic Affairs Minister Steve Blok confirmed on Twitter. Financial business newspaper Financieele Dagblad writes that the group’s departure could cost the government billions.
Shell justifies its decision by noting that simplifying the company’s structure will allow the company to operate faster and more flexibly. Shell will still be listed on the Amsterdam, London and New York stock exchanges, but will lose its royal title in the Netherlands. Therefore, the phrase “Royal Dutch” will be removed from its name. According to the plans, the Shell CEO and CFO will move to the United Kingdom.
I am well aware that today’s announcement is a difficult message for many people. However, I would like to stress that streamlining our structure is essential to accelerating our strategy. In this way we can play a leading role in the energy transition,” explained CEO Ben van Beurden.
The Anglo-Dutch group’s overhaul comes less than a month after activist investor Third Point announced a stake in the company and pushed for changes. Third Point, for example, has argued for splitting Shell into a company active in fossil fuels and a segment focused on sustainable energy sources. Additionally, retaining the dividend tax in the Netherlands – which was abolished in the UK – would also have given the new structure a boost.
Shell will remain active in the Netherlands, among others with the development of renewable energy and other energy innovations. This is done from both The Hague and Amsterdam. The group asserts that the intended move will not have any consequences for the activities of Shell Holland.
However, there are many negative reactions in the Netherlands, including from the government and employers’ organization VNO-NCW. Outgoing Economic Affairs Minister Steve Block said on Twitter that the government was “unpleasantly surprised” by Shell’s decision to move its headquarters to the UK.
According to him, the Cabinet was informed of Shell’s decision on Sunday. “We deeply regret this. We are in talks with the Shell Summit about the consequences of this intention for jobs, critical investment decisions and sustainability. These are extremely important,” the minister said.
The company had already said that the consequences of hiring would be limited to “the transfer of a number of executive/board positions from the Netherlands to the UK”. Shell has around 8,500 employees in the Netherlands.
VNO-NCW, in turn, speaks of “enormous bloodshed in the Netherlands” and “the deterioration of the business climate”. Unilever also left the Netherlands earlier.
Shell shareholders are expected to vote on the new structure on December 10.
The Dutch government’s reaction was an “unpleasant surprise” to Shell’s announcement, outgoing Economic Affairs Minister Steve Blok confirmed on Twitter. Financial business newspaper Financieele Dagblad wrote that the group’s departure could cost the government billions, and Shell justified its decision by pointing out that simplifying the company’s structure would ensure the company could operate faster and more resiliently. Shell will still be listed on the Amsterdam, London and New York stock exchanges, but will lose its royal title in the Netherlands. Therefore, the phrase “Royal Dutch” will be removed from its name. According to the plans, the Shell CEO and CFO will move to the United Kingdom. I am well aware that today’s announcement is a difficult message for many people. However, I would like to stress that streamlining our structure is essential to accelerating our strategy. This way we can play a leading role in the energy transition,” explained CEO Ben van Beurden. The reform of the Anglo-Dutch group’s structure comes less than a month after activist investor Third Point announced a stake in the company and pushed for changes. Third Point, for example, has argued , by splitting Shell into a company active in fossil fuels and a segment focused on sustainable energy sources. In addition, retaining the profit tax in the Netherlands – which was abolished in the UK – would also have given the new structure a boost. Shell will remain active in The Netherlands, among other things with the development of renewable energy and other energy innovations. This is done both from The Hague and Amsterdam. The group asserts that the intended move will not have any consequences for the activities of Shell Holland. However, there are many negative reactions in the Netherlands, Including reactions from the government and employers’ organization VNO-NCW.Resigned Economic Affairs Minister Steve Block said on Twitter that the government was “unpleasantly surprised” by Shell’s decision to move its headquarters to the United Kingdom.And according to him, the Cabinet has been informed of Sh’s decision. l on Sunday. “We deeply regret this. We are in talks with the Shell Summit about the consequences of this intent for jobs, critical investment decisions and sustainability. They are very important,” the minister said. Number of executive/board positions from Holland to UK”. Shell has around 8,500 employees in the Netherlands. VNO-NCW in turn speaks of “enormous bloodshed in the Netherlands” and “deteriorating business climate”. Unilever also left the Netherlands in Earlier, Shell shareholders are expected to vote on the new structure on December 10.
