Shell makes more than twice as Russian business sells

Shell made $9.13 billion 7.3 bn in the first three months of this year - nearly triple the $3.2 billion profit it announced for the same period last year.

The firm said pulling out of Russian deals, including the sale of stakes in all joint business ventures with Russian state energy firm Gazprom, had cost it $3.9 billion 3.1 billion. More than 350 people currently employed by Shell Neft will be transferred to the new owner of the business, according to Huibert Vigeveno, Shell's downstream director.

The acquisition of Shell's high-quality businesses in Russia fits into the strategy of Lukoil's priority sales channels, including retail, as well as the lubricants business, according to Maxim Donde, Lukoil's vice president for refined products sales. When Ukraine broke out of conflict, energy firms came under immediate pressure as countries announced bans on Russian oil and gas in the weeks following the invasion.

It was followed by pledges from ExxonMobil, Equinor, and Shell to cut their Russian investments after pressure from shareholders, as well as from governments and the public.

Total Energies, another big player in Russia, has said it will not fund new projects in the country, but unlike its peers does not plan to sell existing investments.

The country has almost doubled its monthly earnings from selling fossil fuels to the EU, despite widespread sanctions and many countries reducing their reliance on Russian oil.

Since the beginning of the war, the EU has imported about 22 billion barrels of fossil fuels per month from Russia, as oil and gas prices have soared, compared with an average of about 12 bn 10.2 bn a month in 2021.