Shell planning to move headquarters to UK
LONDON — Royal Dutch Shell proposed moving its headquarters from the Netherlands to the United Kingdom and streamlining its structure Monday in hopes of making it easier to move forward in a world transitioning away from a dependence on fossil fuels.
The company, which has been incorporated in the U.K. with Dutch tax residency and dual class shares since 2005, said it wanted to move to a more conventional structure to make the company more competitive as it seeks to meet the challenges of shifting toward cleaner energy.
“The government deeply regrets that Shell wants to move its head office to the United Kingdom,” Dutch Economic Affairs and Climate Minister Stef Blok said. “We are in talks with the top of Shell about the implications of this move for jobs, critical investment decisions and sustainability.”
He said the company had assured the government that “the personnel consequences of this decision will be limited to the relocation of a number of executive, board positions from the Netherlands to the United Kingdom.”
Shell said that while it was proud of its Dutch heritage, the changes mean it would no longer use “Royal Dutch” in its name.
“The simplification will normalize our share structure under the tax and legal jurisdictions of a single country and make us more competitive,” Shell Chairman Andrew Mackenzie said in a statement.
Shareholders will be asked to vote on the measure at a meeting Dec. 10.
The proposal hints at the complications Shell and other energy giants face as they plan for the day when demand for oil fades and major economies turn to electric-powered cars. CEO Ben van Beurden has made it clear in the past that he intends to have the company remain competitive in a world that gets more of its energy from renewable sources.
Shifting from a company that makes fossil fuels to net-zero emissions businesses will involve decreasing investment in one part of the firm and increasing it in another, said David Elmes, an energy expert at the Warwick Business School.