Climate Crisis: Dutch Court tells Shell to cut emissions

On Wednesday, a Dutch Court ordered Royal Dutch Shell to significantly deepen planned greenhouse gas emission cuts, in a landmark ruling that could pave the way for legal action against energy companies around the world.

Shell immediately said it would appeal the Court ruling, which comes amid rising pressure from investors, Activists & Govts on energy companies to shift away from fossil fuels & rapidly ramp up investments in renewable energy.

At a courtroom in The Hague, judge Larisa Alwin read out a ruling which ordered Shell to reduce its planet warming carbon emissions by 45% by 2030 from 2019 levels.

Alwin said that “The court orders Royal Dutch Shell, by means of its corporate policy, to reduce its CO2 emissions by 45% by 2030 with respect to the level of 2019 for the Shell group & the suppliers & customers of the group".

Earlier this year, Shell set out one of the sector’s most ambitious climate strategies. It has a target to cut the carbon intensity of its products by at least 6% by 2023, by 20% by 2030, by 45% by 2035 & by 100% by 2050 from 2016 levels.

But the court said that Shell’s climate policy was “not concrete & is full of conditions...that’s not enough”.

The Judge said that “The conclusion of the court is therefore that Shell is in danger of violating its obligation to reduce. & the court will therefore issue an order upon RDS".

The Court ordered Shell to reduce its absolute levels of carbon emissions, while Shell’s intensity-based targets could allow the company to grow its output in theory.

Tom Cummins, dispute resolution partner at law firm Ashurst said that “This is arguably the most significant climate change related judgment yet, which emphasises that companies & not just governments may be the target of strategic litigation which seeks to drive changes in behaviour".

Shell said that it would appeal the verdict & that it has set out its plan to become a net-zero emissions energy company by 2050.

Climate litigation

The lawsuit, which was filed by seven groups including Greenpeace & Friends of the Earth Netherlands, marks a first in which environmentalists have turned to the courts to try to force a major energy firm to change strategy.

It was filed in April 2019 on behalf of more than 17,000 Dutch citizens who say Shell is threatening human rights as it continues to invest billions in the production of fossil fuels.

“This is a huge win, for us & for anyone affected by climate change”, Friends of the Earth Netherlands director Donald Pols said.

Shell, which is the world’s top oil & gas trader, has said its carbon emissions peaked in 2018, while its oil output peaked in 2019 & was set to drop by 1% to 2% per year.

While its climate targets surpass those of its US rivals such as Exxon & Chevron, which ignore emissions from the combustion of its fuels, the Anglo-Dutch company’s spending will remain tilted towards oil & gas in the near future. 

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