Case Study of CSR

Running head: Case Study of CSR: Royal Dutch Shell plc 1
Case Study of CSR: Royal Dutch Shell plc
Joel M. Schrap
ORG 530 – Business Ethics and Sustainability
Colorado State University – Global Campus
Dr. Jaime Klein
June 23, 2015

Case Study of CSR: Royal Dutch Shell plc 2
Case Study of CSR: Royal Dutch Shell plc
There has been a shift in the way corporations do business. With the development
of the Internet and majority of the world having access through Wi-Fi or through
smartphones, information is available to almost everyone. The public, non-government
organizations (NGO’s), governments, shareholders and non-profit organizations (NPO’s)
have all become stakeholders in corporations. These stakeholders all have different
contributing factors to a corporation, regardless if they are just local or multi-national
corporations (MNC’s), and are keeping corporations accountable for their actions.
Corporations can no longer just continue business by just focusing on profits for their
shareholders; they have to keep in mind what their stakeholders want. Stakeholders are
demanding Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability initiatives that range from
environmental issues to being good corporate citizens to how employees are being
treated, in the company and it’s suppliers; and what corporations are doing with
sustainability issues. Corporations have responded to these stakeholders by becoming
more transparent with not only making financial reports available; they are creating
Annual or Bi-Annual Sustainability Reports. With this information stakeholders can view
what a company is doing, where they are heading and what areas need the most work;
and allows Socially Responsible Investors information to make wise investment issues.
One of these corporations is the Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell); this case study will look
into the financials, sustainability practices, strengths and weaknesses of Shell’s CSR
practices and where improvement can be made.
Royal Dutch Shell plc

The Royal Dutch Shell plc, is a registered public limited corporation in England
and Wales and headquartered in The Hague, The Netherlands (Shell 2015a, p1). Shell
operates as an oil and natural gas producer and supplier with operations in over 70
countries and has an average employee base of 94,000 (Shell 2015a, p56). The Global
Industrial Classification Standard (GICS) category Shell is in is Energy with a sub-
category of Integrated Oil and Gas. For Shell’s United States operations the oversight of
the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has assigned them the
Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code of 1311 for Crude Petroleum and Natural
Gas (OSHA.gov 2015, p1). Ben van Beurden, CEO of Shell, joined the company in 1983
after graduating with a Master’s in Chemical Engineering and became CEO in 2014
(Shell 2015a, p58). Shell focuses on three areas in their business: 1) Upstream –
exploration and extraction of oil and natural gas, 2) Downstream – refine oil, ships and
trades crude, manufacturing of a wide range of products and 3) Projects & Technology –
manages delivery of major projects and drives research and innovation to create
technology solutions (Shell 2015b, p1).
Financial Information
Shell being an MNC is traded on three different Stock Exchanges internationally:
London Stock Exchange, Euronext Amsterdam and the New York Stock Exchange
(NYSE) (Shell 2015b, p1). The stocks are traded with two distinct stock symbols in
Europe those symbols are RDSA and RDSB, whereas for the NYSE the stock symbols
are RDS.A and RDS.B which are American Depositary Receipt (ADR) shares. Shell is
listed as the number two corporation on the 2014 Fortune 500 Global Index (Fortune.com
2015, p2), number 18 on 2015 BrandFinance® Global 500 Most Valuable Brands

(BrandDirectory 2015, p1). According to Standard & Poors (S&P) (2015a), credit rating
Shell has an AA Long-term credit rating for both Foreign and Local Currency and an A-
1+ rating for short-term with a negative watch outlook (p1). Moody’s (2015) has Shell
rated for long-term as Aa1 and short-term P-1 with a negative outlook (p1). According to
the press release sent out by S&P (2015b), Shell was downgraded to negative outlook for
the reported 47 billion pounds in cash and shares for the purchase of BG Group plc. (p1).
Shell in 2014 posted revenues of $421.1 billion with a net income of $14.7 billion
(Shell 2015b, p1). Shell spent $23.9 billion on net capital investments and another $1.2
billion on research and development (Shell 2015b, p1). Currently on the Nasdaq (2015),
Shell’s shares are trading at $59.49 in the United States (p1), in London shares are
trading at 1,886.00 GBp (Bloomberg 2015a, p1) and in Amsterdam share are trading at
26.60 EUR (Bloomberg 2015b, p1). Figure 1.1 shows the past five years of revenue,
gross profit and net income for Shell, to demonstrate how financially profitable the
corporation is.
0 100 200 300 400 500
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
Per Million
Figure 1.1
Net Income
Gross Profit
Revenue

(Morningstar 2015, p1).
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Shell’s approach to CSR/Sustainability is three-fold: 1) Running a safe, efficient,
responsible and profitable business, 2) Sharing wider benefits where we operate and 3)
Helping to shape a sustainable energy future (Shell 2015c, p8). According to Stuchly and
Jasuilewicz-Kaczmarek (2014) sustainable development is obtaining a balance between
economic, social and environmental priorities (p1). The three areas that Shell focuses on
can be redefined as the Triple Bottom Line (TBL): People, Planet, Profits (3P’s)
(Castodli 2011, p4). In focusing on TBL and due to the nature of the product they
produce, Shell’s sustainable practices for the future are under scrutiny for the
environmental impact in regards to carbon footprint and the depletion of natural
resources. Stuchly and Jasuilwicz (2014) summarized Sidorczuk-Pietraszko (2007) in that
not only do companies need to focus on the present needs they also need to satisfy for the
future, “simultaneous protection, maintenance and strengthening of human and
environmental potential” (p1).
Profit. One area that a corporation needs to be sustainable in is with profits.
Without profits the company can no longer exist and contribute to their business, as well
as, other sustainability issues. In revenue last year, Shell brought in $421.2 billion dollars
worldwide, after taxes, business expenses, Research and Development, sustainability
efforts the corporation netted $14.7 billion (Shell 2015b, p1). The area of profit looks
more at the shareholders and operations of the organization so the organization can
continue to produce the product they sale and give a return on investment to shareholders.
Last year, Shell paid out $11.8 billion in dividends to shareholders (Shell 2015c, p46).

Not only profits good for the corporation and it’s shareholders it is a benefit to the
communities and countries they work in with the collection of taxes and royalties. In total
Shell paid out $14.3 billion globally in income taxes, $3.9 billion in royalties paid to
governments, and collected $72.7 billion in excise duties and sales tax (Shell 2015c,
p46). In Nigeria alone, Shell paid $3 billion in royalties and taxes to the Nigerian
government and from 2010 to 2014, $48 billion in revenues went to the Nigerian
government for the operations Shell has in Nigeria (Shell 2015c, p37). From profits
alone, Shell is sustainable and helping through dividends, taxes, royalties and revenues.
However, where does this money come from outside of the investor’s capital?
Revenue Sources. Shell focuses on several areas to gain a profit: 1) Exploration,
2) Development and Extraction, 3) Manufacturing and Energy Production, 4) Transport
and Trading, 5) Producing BioFuels, 6) Generating energy and 7) Retail and Business to
Business (Shell 2015c, p1). Their upstream focus is on exploring and producing natural
gas, crude oil and natural gas liquids through onshore and offshore fields (Shell 2015c,
p1). Downstream they focus on the manufacturing of oil, biofuels and chemicals for sale
or trade, while operating their own fleet of transportation, including oil tankers and
natural gas carriers (Shell 2015c, p1). Through Projects and Technology they create
solutions for Upstream and Downstream into making the fields they operate profitable, as
well as, setting the corporation up for future value (Shell 2015c, p1).
In 2014, Shell provided 2% of the world’s oil production and 3% of the world’s
gas production (Shell 2015c, p46). They produced 3.1 million barrels of oil a day in
2014, and 24 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (Shell 2015c, p46). Shell’s sales
come from 43,000 Shell branded gas stations, which receive 25 million customers a day

in 70 different countries (Shell 2015c, p40). Other products that Shell sells are; 1)
Advanced Lubricants, 2) Natural Gas-to-liquids (GTI) to the chemical industry, 3) Fuel
for ships and aircrafts, 4) Biofuels, 5) Wind Energy, 6) Hydrogen Transport (hydrogen-
based fuel), 7) Renewable energy production (solar power to create steam for production)
and 8) Solar power collection and storage to use at night (Shell 2015c, p40-43).
Increased profits will and a sustainable business will continue, as the demand for
energy will become higher in the years and decades to come. In Shell’s own estimates the
global population will grow by 2 billion people by 2050 increasing the need for energy
consumption up to 2/3rds more from todays consumption (Shell 2015c, p1&7). In fact,
the UN estimates that the Worlds population will be at roughly 9.6 billion people by the
2050, even more than the 9 billion that Shell is predicting (UN 2013, p1). With demand
in emerging markets and the addition of population growth over the next decade’s energy
is a major concern, not only about supplying it, however, how it will be supplied and the
impact on the planet with Greenhouse Gases (GHG) and reduction of supply of non-
renewable energy. What is Shell doing in regards to environmental concerns?
Planet. Shell’s main business is the extraction of oil and producing into
lubricants and gas. With the increase of population a larger demand for energy will come.
However, in some estimates with the combination of renewable energy the best-case
scenario for depletion of natural resources, as in this case oil, is 2069 and worst-case
scenario of 2049 (Mohaddes 2013, p190). With this acknowledgement and the other
environmental issues that extraction and use of the product has on the environment, what
is Shell doing to help and alleviate this issues.

CO2 and Greenhouse Gases (GHGs). Shell estimates that the cost of CO2 to be at
$40 per tonne of emitted CO2 and has equated this into the development of new projects
and facilities being built (Shell 2015c, p17). Shell has also been a corporate leader in
calling for putting a price on carbon output and has been working with governments and
organizations to put carbon pricing into a future international agreement on climate
change (Shell 2015c, p17). Shell is working on reducing their own footprint by reducing
flaring releasing methane gas into the environment, as well as, investing in carbon
capture and storage units (Shell 2015c, p17). They are using the CO2 captured and
reusing for improving efficiency in oil recovery before storing the CO2 underground
(Shell 2015c, p17). They are also capturing sulphur dioxide and turning it into sulphuric
acid to be used for industrial purposes (Shell 2015c, p17). In their 2014 Sustainability
Report, Shell publishes an opinion from Nathaniel Keohane (VP, International Climate,
Environmental Defense Fund, NY), which adds to the transparency of their report.
However, he states that though he applauds Shell’s stance on working with adding carbon
pricing and the capturing of CO2, that Shell has a lot of work to be done with the release
of methane due to flaring. He also states that methane is 82 times more potent than
carbon dioxide and he challenges Shell to adopt a zero tolerance policy of methane
emissions (Shell 2015c, p17). To protect the release of gases that are harmful for the
environment, Shell implements infrared technology to find gas leaks, as well as, green
completion that captures methane, volatile organics and other pollutants to reduce the
impact (Shell 2015c, p29).
Five Global Principles. Shell uses the terminology of “Tight gas and oil” (Shell
2015c, p28) in regards to their extraction policies and impact on the environment. Within

this process they utilize Five Global Principles; 1) Safety, 2) Air Quality, 3) Water
protection and use, 4) Land use and 5) Engagement with local communities (Shell 2015c,
p28). In the process of hydraulic fracturing (fracking), large amounts of water, chemicals
and sand are used to break up rock and release the oil and gas into wells (Shell 2015c,
p28). Many NGO’s, NPO’s, governments and other activist are concerned with the high
pressure of water used with the chemical mixture affecting the drinkable waters and
natural wetlands that these processes are being used nearby (Shell 2015c, p28). Shell has
implemented safe guards to protect these precious environments and to do no harm. They
have developed barriers to isolate their wells from the to fresh-water aquifers and
continuously test the surrounding waters for any changes (Shell 2015c, p28).
People. Shell implements their Code of Conduct (CoC) throughout their operation
(Shell 2015c, p10). The CoC covers individual responsibilities in; 1) Safety, 2) Anti-
bribery, 3) Corruption and 4) Fair Competition (Shell 2015c, p10). Shell not only focuses
on their CoC in Shell owned and operated businesses; they also strongly encourage their
Joint Ventures, Suppliers and Supplier Suppliers (Shell 2015c, p10). They encourage the
all involved in their businesses to report any concerns and will in good faith find
solutions to the issues and set corrective measures (Shell 2015c, p10).
Shell follows the UN’s Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and
has been working since 2010 to implement diversity measures into their policies, systems
and practices (Shell 2015c, p10). The focus on human rights for Shell encompasses four
areas: 1) Communities, 2) Security, 3) Labour Rights and 4) Supply Chain (Shell 2015c,
p10). Shell operates on three core values as well; Honesty, Integrity and Respect, and
they implement this throughout their processes (Shell 2015c, p10).

Communities. In areas around that the globe that Shell operates in they engage the
local communities to have discussions about the impact of their business in these
communities. The discussions range from environmental to employment to
education.(Shell 2015c, p18). Shell aims to be positive corporate citizens in the
communities that they operate in. One way they reinvest in communities is by utilizing
their LiveWire programme that helps entrepreneurs start their own businesses (Shell
2015c, p19). In Iraq, Shell has teamed with AMAR International Charitable Foundation;
a foundation that helps communities in the Middle East to rebuild after conflict, in
supplying much needed health care options to those in the communities around where
Shell operates (Shell 2015c, p34). In Nigeria, Shell has focused on Entrepreneurship,
Education and Health (Shell 2015c, p36).
Security. In Nigeria and Iraq, Shell has helped with funding community patrols
that have access to armed security details where sabotage may be happening in those
areas and to help protect the communities (Shell 2015c, p34 and 36). With
Compliance. According to Shell, they are working to attribute to the 2º C
Scenario as set out by the International Energy Agency (Shell 2015c, p 6). In this
scenario Shell is helping to reduce GHG so that the goal of rising temperatures will only
hit 2º C annually in lieu of the 6º C that is currently being projected. However, in other
environmental concerns, especially with Shell’s goal for no harm and no leaks (Shell
2015c, p13), Environmental Rights Action, CEHRD, Platform, Friends of the Earth
Europe and Amnesty International (2015) released a report lambasting Shell and it’s
exploits in Nigeria and have reported that there has been “No Progress” in the past three

years of implementing the UN Environmental Programme in Nigeria due to the past 50
years of oil production in that country (Media for Justice Project 2015, p1-2).
The Essential Action Organization has called for an all out boycott of Royal Dutch Shell
for environmental issues in the Nigeria Delta (Essential Action 2015, p1). The areas that
Essential Action is going against Shell on are Environmental Degradation, Natural Gas
Flaring, Oil Spills, Human Rights, Pipelines and Construction and Health Impacts
(Essential Action 2015, p1). Aaron (2012) stated that in Shell’s CSR practices in Nigeria
and presentation to the Multi-Stakeholder Forum was greeted with criticisms and
questions on whether the gains that were reported were spurious (p268).
Ratings. From 1999 to 2010, Shell was included in the Dow Jones Sustainability
Index (DJSI), however, from 2010-2012, Shell was not included in the index due to the
issues in Nigeria (Shell 2015d, p1). Shell is not currently on the DJSI for not being in the
top 10% of their industry, yet they are listed as Sustainability Yearbook Members on the
DJSI website (Robecosam 2015, p1). Shell is listed on the FTSE4Good Environmental
Leaders Europe 40 Index (FTSE4Good 2015, p2). In 2014, Shell voluntarily reported to
the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) and received a rating of B and was not included in
the top of their industry for Carbon practices (Carbon Disclosure Project 2014, p1). With
the rise of SRI and the impact of companies and their sustainability practices, Shell has
not received much of an impact for not being included on the DJSI and other
sustainability indexes. Robinson, Bleffner and Bertels (2011) found that there is only a
temporary loss of stock when being removed from the DJSI (p494) their data stated that
.05% loss at announcement of being removed from the index and after 10 days a .03%
loss (p496). However, financially the loss of not being listed on the DJSI is not high,

being removed has implications on their reputation of sustainability. (Robinson, Bleffner
& Bertels 2011, p495).
S.W.O.T (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats)
In a SWOT analysis, Shell has numerous strengths that will help with the need of
extra energy due to the addition of over 2 billion people in the next 35 years. The
strengths entail further exploration in remote areas for more natural gas and oil; teaming
with other organizations to help reduce CO2; reporting on their Sustainability since 1999
(Shell 2015d, p1); collaborating with NGO’s in looking at Human Rights issues and
Environmental issues in the areas that they do business in (Shell 2015c, p22-23). Another
strength is that within their Sustainability Report (2015) they have opinions throughout
that are sometimes critical of their processes and urging Shell to further improve on their
sustainability practices, these come from NGO’s and even the External Review
Committee that reviews their report (Shell 2015, p54). Shell recognizes that there is a lot
of work that will need to be done and the sharing of ideas is a key ingredient to the future
of energy. They believe that one company cannot do this alone and that all need to assist
in the future (Shell 2015c, p5).
Weaknesses include the practices in Nigeria that have been previously stated and
the need to become a leader in Sustainability practices in that region. The need for more
R&D spending, as $1.2 billion in 2014 (Shell 2015c, p42), to find new and more cleaner
forms of energy and help reduce the use of non-renewable energy sources. A more clear
and precise Sustainability Report that all stakeholders can read and understand.
Opportunities include developing a department within Shell that handles all ethics
and sustainability issues. Currently, Shell’s Sustainability is run through committees in

the executive arm of the company and is chaired by the CEO (Shell 2015c, p11). This
committee on the board is a great idea, however, with the international reach of the
organization a team of employees led by a Chief Sustainability Officer would be a
positive addition to the business structure of Shell. Other opportunities lie in the need for
realistic opportunities for new alternative energy sources and the reduction of flaring and
reusing of waste during production. The Sustainability Report (2015) is filled with what
the business of Shell is an how they help in the environment, however, spend minimal
time on the communities that they are involved and are not as transparent as they need to
be.
The largest threats to Shell and their Sustainability lies in profits and the nature of
the product that they extract, produce, sell and trade. Natural Gas and Oil are by nature
non-renewable energy sources, granted not all has been found on the planet, however the
sources are dwindling. The biggest threat of the depletion of these natural resources is the
end of organizations like Shell continuing to do business the “old-way” and not putting
further funds into the R&D of new energy sources. Other threats are with sabotages on
the pipelines in Iraq and Nigeria the loss of precious commodities and the disruption of
production has huge bottom line implications. The final threat that is transparency, as
stated earlier by Aaron (2011) the image of Shell making up information to say they are
making an impact is under scrutiny and the more transparent Shell becomes the more
trustworthy they will be in the eyes of SRI’s and other stakeholders.
Plan
Shell has been responsible in their Sustainability Reporting though there are a few
areas that need to be addressed. First, the Sustainability Report needs to become more

user friendly, designate an area for each of the ThreeP’s and have it clearly stated what
the goals of the corporation are. Second, the development of a Sustainability Department
within Shell’s organization led by a CSO would help with the transparency and image
issues that need to be addressed. This department would also assist in the rapid response
to disasters, such as oil spills; help with the accountability of Joint-Ventures and
Suppliers; working with NGO’s, NPO’s, Governments and communities to make sure
economically, environmentally and socially sound policies are in place. Finally, moving
more capital into R&D for future energy possibilities to help sustain the growing demand
of energy worldwide, with these added funds and collaboration with NGO’s, NPO’s,
governments, academics, scientist and innovators, the solution to these needs to could be
found sooner than later. These R&D funds could also be used to develop collaboration
between transportation organizations, i.e. automakers, aerospace and ship makers, in
finding new and better ways to power transportation.
Conclusion
Shell has made some significant strides in their CSR reporting and are still
extremely financially sound, yet there is still work to be done. Doing business as usual
can sustain them for awhile, however, new approaches will need to be made in their
business model, research development and transparency. Teaming with NGO’s, NPO’s
and other organizations is a sign of good faith, however, actions are needed to answer not
only the demand for their products but for the future generations that will ultimately walk
this planet.

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