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The UK-based firm said its adjusted earnings reached $6.91 billion in the first quarter, up from $5.58 billion in the comparable quarter in 2025.
Adjusted earnings jumped from $3.26 billion in the prior quarter.
Compared with the fourth quarter of 2025, adjusted earnings reflected higher contributions from trading and optimization, mainly impacting Shell’s downstream, renewables and energy solutions businesses, higher realized prices, higher refining margins, lower operating expenses and higher lubricants margins, partly offset by lower volumes.
Income attributable to Shell shareholders reached $5.69 billion in the first quarter, up from $4.78 billion in the comparable quarter and from $4.13 billion in the prior quarter.
Compared with the prior quarter, income attributable to Shell shareholders was driven by the same factors as adjusted earnings and includes the impact of identified items and a current cost of supplies adjustment of $1.2 billion, Shell said.
“Shell delivered strong results enabled by our relentless focus on operational performance in a quarter marked by unprecedented disruption in global energy markets. The safety of our people remains our priority as we work closely with governments and customers to address their energy needs,” CEO Wael Sawan said.
“Last week, we announced the acquisition of ARC Resources, accelerating our strategy by adding complementary, high-quality, low-cost liquids and gas assets that we believe will deliver value for decades to come,” he said.
“Today, consistent with our value-driven capital allocation philosophy, we are rebalancing our shareholder distributions, with a $3 billion share buyback program for the next 3 months and a 5 percent increase in the dividend, in line with our existing 40-50 percent of CFFO distribution policy,” Sawan said.
LNG sales climb
The company sold 19.16 million tonnes of LNG in the first quarter, a rise from 16.49 million tonnes of LNG in the same period in 2025
LNG sales dropped compared to 19.79 million tonnes in the prior quarter.
Shell sold 72.94 million tonnes of LNG in 2025, a rise of 11 percent compared to 65.82 million tonnes in 2024.
Liquefaction volumes of 7.86 million tonnes in the first quarter were higher compared to 6.60 million tonnes in the comparable quarter and 7.81 million tonnes in the prior quarter.
Shell said that liquefaction volumes increased compared to the prior quarter mainly due to LNG Canada ramp-up, partly offset by unfavorable weather in Australia.
The company expects liquefaction volumes to be approximately 6.8–7.4 million tonnes in the second quarter of this year.
Shell’s total oil and gas production dropped to 909,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in the first quarter compared to 927,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in the comparable quarter and 948,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in the prior quarter.
Compared with the previous quarter, total oil and gas production decreased by 4 percent mainly due to the impact of the Middle East conflict on Qatari volumes, Shell said.
Integrated gas earnings drop
Shell’s integrated gas segment reported adjusted earnings of $1.82 billion in the first quarter.
Adjusted earnings dropped from $2.48 billion in the comparable quarter but they rose from $1.66 billion in the prior quarter.
Compared with the prior quarter, adjusted earnings reflected the higher realized prices mainly from liquid products (increase of $263 million), partly offset by lower volumes (decrease of $131 million), Shell said.
Shell said the company’s trading and optimization results were in line with the fourth quarter of 2025.
Last month, Shell announced that it expects trading and optimization results for its integrated gas business in the first quarter of 2026 to be in line compared with the previous quarter.