OT Can one of the financial experts on here explain something to me?...

.. Shell have announced record profits again. People are defending them saying, due to large investment in UK in renewables and oil exploration in North sea/decommissioning old rigs etc . there is not much profit in the UK arm. They pay 65% tax (includng the windfall one). My questions though are:

1 However you slice & dice it, defending Shell as "UK profits are reduced due to high levels of investment in UK makes no sense. How does UK allowing " tax savings worth 91p of every £1 invested in fossil fuel extraction in the UK" via the Energy Profits Levy benefit the UK if we still end up paying the World Market price for it rather than getting preferential discounted prices in return?

2 Would removing the 91p tax saving result in companies pulling out especially where they have already invested heavily? Surely removing a tax subsidy would have the same effect a a windfall tax where profits are low or non existent.

Ironically before we sold off the rights, the Oil and gas in question was in the UK territiorial waters anyway.
Accounting 'sleight of hand' with multinationals means winners and losers. In this case, as usual, shareholders win and most of the countries' consumers heavily reliant on the major Oil and Gas companies (i.e. most of the World) are losers.

 

£6.4B in dividends paid out this year.
No surprise that Shell & BP major share holders are Banks and Financial Institutions.

 

They said earlier this year that a windfall tax wouldn’t effect their investments.

 

That's waaaay over my head. Then, most things are..

 

CEO of Shell saying today they are expecting and prepared for it next year.