Shell says annual profit up 11% despite falling oil prices

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LONDON - British energy giant Shell said Thursday that its net profit rose 11 percent last year as higher volumes and lower costs helped to offset falling oil and gas prices.

Profit after tax climbed to $17.84 billion in 2025 from $16.1 billion a year earlier, Shell said in a statement.

Energy prices faced pressure last year on concerns that US President Donald Trump's tariffs would hurt economic growth. They dropped further as a result of higher output by OPEC+ nations.

More recently, prices have rallied as Trump ramped up military threats against major oil producer Iran, but have since cooled on easing tensions between Washington and Tehran.

Shell said its underlying earnings, which strip out some energy-price movements and one-off charges, dropped 22 percent to $18.53 billion last year.

In the fourth quarter alone, net profit fell 22 percent from the previous quarter, to $4.1 billion.

"In Q4, despite lower earnings... cash delivery remained solid," chief executive Wael Sawan said in the statement.

He added that Shell was raising its dividend to shareholders and would begin a new share buyback programme worth $3.5 billion.

Shell announced in November that it was ending its participation in two offshore wind projects in the North Sea, part of its shift away from alternative energy to focus on its fossil fuels business.

The company, like some of its rivals, has scaled back various climate objectives in favour of more profitable oil and gas production.

Shell's British rival BP, which publishes its 2025 earnings next Tuesday, said last month that it would take a write-down of up to $5 billion linked to its own energy operations.