The Hague-based LNG giant Shell said it would lodge an appeal against a Dutch court ruling obliging it to reduce its carbon emissions by 45 percent by 2030.
In a ruling issued on Wednesday, the Hague District Court ordered Shell to reduce its CO2 emissions by 45 percent by 2030 with respect to the level of 2019 for the company and its suppliers but also customers.
This represents a much bigger cut in emissions compared to plans Shell has revealed earlier this year in the company’s energy transition strategy.
Shell said in the strategy it aims to cut the carbon intensity of its products by 20 percent by 2030, 45 percent by 2035, and 100 percent by 2050 from 2016 levels.
The new ruling comes as a result of legal action brought by Friends of the Earth Netherlands (Milieudefensie) together with 17,000 co-plaintiffs and six other organisations.
“Disappointing court decision”
Shell said in a statement after the ruling that it would lodge an appeal against the rulling.
“Urgent action is needed on climate change which is why we have accelerated our efforts to become a net-zero emissions energy company by 2050, in step with society, with short-term targets to track our progress,” Shell said.
“We are investing billions of dollars in low-carbon energy, including electric vehicle charging, hydrogen, renewables and biofuels,” it said.
In addition, Shell said the firm wants to grow demand for these products and scale up its new energy businesses “even more quickly.”
“We will continue to focus on these efforts and fully expect to appeal today’s disappointing court decision,” Shell said.