• Shell’s 2025 payments report covers extractive payments to governments in 26 countries, using the UK reporting threshold of £86,000 or equivalent.
• Its climate lobbying report reviews direct and indirect advocacy across net zero, carbon pricing, methane, LNG, transport, aviation, shipping, CCS and hydrogen.
• Shell says its advocacy supports a “more value with less emissions” strategy, while warning its 2050 net-zero target depends on society moving toward net zero.

Shell has published two major transparency reports for 2025, giving investors, policymakers and civil society a fresh view of how one of the world’s largest energy companies engages with governments on tax, climate policy and the energy transition.

The first, Shell’s 2025 Report on Payments to Governments, provides a consolidated overview of payments made by Shell plc and its subsidiaries to governments during the year. The disclosure is required under the UK’s Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations 2014, as amended in 2015.

The report covers extractive activities only. It also applies a materiality threshold of £86,000, or the equivalent amount in other currencies. As a result, Shell included payments to governments in 26 countries.

At the same time, Shell published its Climate and Energy Transition Lobbying Report 2025, which reviews its direct and indirect advocacy on climate and energy transition policy during the year. The company said the report is part of its wider effort to disclose how its lobbying aligns with its business strategy and the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Lobbying Report Focuses On Policy, Markets And Regulation

Shell’s climate lobbying report sets out a broad advocacy agenda. It covers net-zero policy, carbon pricing, carbon credits, methane emissions, upstream regulation, road transport, aviation, shipping, power, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen and LNG.

The report states that Shell supports policies it believes are aligned with the Paris Agreement and the goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. It also says the company advocates both directly with governments and indirectly through industry associations and coalitions.

For boards and investors, the key issue is governance. Shell says its Board oversees strategy and energy transition plans, while its CEO is responsible for implementation. The company’s Vice President Policy and Advocacy approves public policy positions and annual advocacy priorities, including climate and energy transition positions.

Shell also outlines how it manages industry association memberships. The company says it reviews selected associations for alignment with its climate and energy transition policy positions. Where differences arise, Shell may remain engaged, advocate independently, disclose the gap, or reassess membership.

Energy Security Remains Central To Shell’s Position

Shell frames its climate advocacy around what it calls a balanced energy transition. The company says governments should maintain secure and affordable energy supplies while accelerating low-carbon solutions.

That balance runs through its policy positions. Shell says it supports carbon pricing as a central pillar of net-zero policy frameworks. It also backs high-integrity carbon credits, methane regulation, sustainable aviation fuel policies, carbon capture incentives and hydrogen investment support.

However, the report also makes clear that Shell continues to advocate for oil and gas policy frameworks. It says regulations should support production and supply with lower emissions, while providing fiscal and regulatory predictability.

In LNG, Shell positions gas as part of energy security and transition planning. The report points to advocacy around regulatory capacity, infrastructure, methane reduction and long-term energy supply.

Net-Zero Caveats Matter For Investors

Shell’s announcement includes important qualifications for ESG investors. The company says its “net carbon intensity” metric includes emissions from its own energy production, suppliers’ emissions linked to that production and customers’ emissions from using the energy products Shell sells. It also includes emissions tied to energy products made by others and resold by Shell.

Shell notes that it only controls its own emissions. It says the NCI term is used for convenience and is not meant to suggest all those emissions belong to Shell plc or its subsidiaries.

The company also says its operating plan and outlook cover three-year and ten-year periods. As a result, they cannot fully reflect Shell’s 2050 net-zero emissions target, which sits outside that planning window. Shell added that if society is not net zero in 2050, there would be “significant risk” that Shell may not meet its target.

That caveat is material. It places Shell’s long-term climate ambition within a wider dependency on policy, markets, infrastructure and customer demand.

Transparency Becomes A Governance Test

For C-suite leaders and investors, Shell’s reports show how climate lobbying has moved deeper into governance and disclosure expectations. Payments to governments now sit alongside lobbying transparency, industry association alignment and climate policy positions.

The reports do not resolve the strategic tension facing global energy majors. Shell is still investing in oil and gas while arguing for policies that support low-carbon demand, carbon markets and industrial decarbonisation.

Shell has published two major transparency reports for 2025, giving investors, policymakers and civil society a fresh view of how one of the world’s largest energy companies engages with governments on tax, climate policy and the energy transition.

The first, Shell’s 2025 Report on Payments to Governments, provides a consolidated overview of payments made by Shell plc and its subsidiaries to governments during the year. The disclosure is required under the UK’s Reports on Payments to Governments Regulations 2014, as amended in 2015.

The report covers extractive activities only. It also applies a materiality threshold of £86,000, or the equivalent amount in other currencies. As a result, Shell included payments to governments in 26 countries.

At the same time, Shell published its Climate and Energy Transition Lobbying Report 2025, which reviews its direct and indirect advocacy on climate and energy transition policy during the year. The company said the report is part of its wider effort to disclose how its lobbying aligns with its business strategy and the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Lobbying Report Focuses On Policy, Markets And Regulation

Shell’s climate lobbying report sets out a broad advocacy agenda. It covers net-zero policy, carbon pricing, carbon credits, methane emissions, upstream regulation, road transport, aviation, shipping, power, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen and LNG.

The report states that Shell supports policies it believes are aligned with the Paris Agreement and the goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. It also says the company advocates both directly with governments and indirectly through industry associations and coalitions.

For boards and investors, the key issue is governance. Shell says its Board oversees strategy and energy transition plans, while its CEO is responsible for implementation. The company’s Vice President Policy and Advocacy approves public policy positions and annual advocacy priorities, including climate and energy transition positions.

Shell also outlines how it manages industry association memberships. The company says it reviews selected associations for alignment with its climate and energy transition policy positions. Where differences arise, Shell may remain engaged, advocate independently, disclose the gap, or reassess membership.

RELATED ARTICLE: Shell Reports 1.1 Billion Tons CO2 Emissions in 2025

Energy Security Remains Central To Shell’s Position

Shell frames its climate advocacy around what it calls a balanced energy transition. The company says governments should maintain secure and affordable energy supplies while accelerating low-carbon solutions.

That balance runs through its policy positions. Shell says it supports carbon pricing as a central pillar of net-zero policy frameworks. It also backs high-integrity carbon credits, methane regulation, sustainable aviation fuel policies, carbon capture incentives and hydrogen investment support.

However, the report also makes clear that Shell continues to advocate for oil and gas policy frameworks. It says regulations should support production and supply with lower emissions, while providing fiscal and regulatory predictability.

In LNG, Shell positions gas as part of energy security and transition planning. The report points to advocacy around regulatory capacity, infrastructure, methane reduction and long-term energy supply.

Net-Zero Caveats Matter For Investors

Shell’s announcement includes important qualifications for ESG investors. The company says its “net carbon intensity” metric includes emissions from its own energy production, suppliers’ emissions linked to that production and customers’ emissions from using the energy products Shell sells. It also includes emissions tied to energy products made by others and resold by Shell.

Shell notes that it only controls its own emissions. It says the NCI term is used for convenience and is not meant to suggest all those emissions belong to Shell plc or its subsidiaries.

The company also says its operating plan and outlook cover three-year and ten-year periods. As a result, they cannot fully reflect Shell’s 2050 net-zero emissions target, which sits outside that planning window. Shell added that if society is not net zero in 2050, there would be “significant risk” that Shell may not meet its target.

That caveat is material. It places Shell’s long-term climate ambition within a wider dependency on policy, markets, infrastructure and customer demand.

Transparency Becomes A Governance Test

For C-suite leaders and investors, Shell’s reports show how climate lobbying has moved deeper into governance and disclosure expectations. Payments to governments now sit alongside lobbying transparency, industry association alignment and climate policy positions.

The reports do not resolve the strategic tension facing global energy majors. Shell is still investing in oil and gas while arguing for policies that support low-carbon demand, carbon markets and industrial decarbonisation.

Yet the disclosures give stakeholders more detail on where Shell is trying to influence policy, where it sees risk and how it links advocacy to strategy. In a year when climate policy, trade, energy security and industrial competitiveness are increasingly connected, that level of transparency is becoming a central test of corporate ESG credibility.Yet the disclosures give stakeholders more detail on where Shell is trying to influence policy, where it sees risk and how it links advocacy to strategy. In a year when climate policy, trade, energy security and industrial competitiveness are increasingly connected, that level of transparency is becoming a central test of corporate ESG credibility.

Read the Shell Climate and Energy Transition Lobbying Report 2025 here.