LONDON – Royal Dutch Shell today forecast that this year’s deadly Texas winter storm will cost the Anglo-Dutch energy giant up to US$200 million (RM827 million) in the first quarter.
“The Texas winter storm had an impact on our operations, and is expected to have an aggregate adverse impact of up to US$200 million on adjusted earnings,” said the company in a statement.
Last year, Shell plunged to a net loss of US$21.7 billion as factories shut and aircraft were grounded owing to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Texas storm was expected to curb production by between 10,000 and 20,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) during the three months to end-March, said the statement.
Total production is expected to climb to between 2.4 million and 2.475 million boepd, up from 2.371 million boepd in Q4 last year.
February’s polar vortex storm killed dozens of people, left millions without electricity and water, caused billions of dollars of damage to the sector, and forced several Texas power firms to file for bankruptcy.
The freezing temperatures also caused outages at energy installations – natural gas-fired power plants, wind turbines and nuclear facilities – that are not typically insulated as they are in states with colder climates. – AFP, April 7, 2021
