Shell Plc’s earnings from natural gas trading will be significantly lower in the second quarter due to seasonal shifts in the market.
Oil and gas production will also be down compared with the first three months of the year due to field maintenance, while the company’s chemicals business is expected to post a loss, Shell said in an update ahead of its full results later this month.
Trading helped Shell deliver record profits last year amid volatility in European natural gas prices, but conditions were less advantageous in the second quarter.
Earnings from the unit are “expected to be significantly lower compared to a strong first quarter due to seasonality and fewer optimization opportunities,” Shell said in a statement. The division’s performance returned to average levels seen in 2021 and 2022.
The company recently provided new insight into its trading unit’s overall performance, disclosing that it drives as much as a quarter of the supermajor’s profitability.
Shell’s US peer Exxon Mobil Corp. has said that its second-quarter earnings will be reduced by about $4 billion compared to the first three months of the year because of lower natural gas prices and oil-refining margins. The American major is seeking to build up a trading business to compete with European majors like Shell.
