The Shell gas station logo is displayed in Austin, Texas on February 13, 2025.
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Dutch group Follow This on Wednesday announced a newly revised strategy to take on big oil in the upcoming proxy season, aiming to increase shareholder pressure on the financial sustainability of fossil fuel business models.
The prominent climate activist group, which paused filing shareholder resolutions last year citing a lack of investor appetite, said it would pivot to focus on the financial risks of falling demand for oil and gas, rather than calling for emissions reduction targets.
The shift comes as oil and gas giants double down on their use of hydrocarbons and scale back investments in green energy as part of boosting profits.
Follow This, along with 23 institutional investors with €1.5 trillion ($1.75 trillion) in assets under management, has announced that it has jointly tabled a new shareholder resolution for the UK annual general meeting (AGM). shell and blood pressure.
The resolution requires both London-listed companies to disclose their strategies for creating shareholder value under scenarios of reduced oil and gas demand, including the International Energy Agency’s Stated Policy Scenarios (STEPS) and Publicly Pledged Scenarios (APS).
“Every sane investor knows that climate change threatens their entire portfolio – even BlackRock knows it. Everybody knows it, but they don’t dare take action,” Follow This founder Mark van Baal told CNBC in a video call.
“We came to the conclusion that if we want to increase the pressure on oil companies to change, we need more votes and we need to bring more issues to the table,” Van Baal said.
“They only change if the business model is no longer profitable, if they are no longer licensed to operate, or if the shareholders steer in a different direction. We have always worked with shareholder implications in mind.”
A Shell spokesperson said: “As with any resolution that meets procedural requirements, the board will consider it and make recommendations to shareholders in the notice of general meeting.”
BP did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
A fuel pump connected to a car is seen at a gas station in Krakow, Poland, June 19, 2025.
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Follow This has enjoyed the support of a majority of investors, but support has peaked at around 20% in recent years due to concerns about legal risks, particularly in the United States.
A change in approach is needed given that many investors remain cautious about supporting climate change-related resolutions. In contrast, financial risk is an issue that the board cannot ignore as non-financial, Follow This said.
“Everyone is hesitant. In the United States, politicians are hesitant because there is a tendency to deny the president, but in Europe, right-wing politicians just repeat that message, and centrist politicians don’t talk much about climate anymore,” Van Baal said.
Climate scientists have repeatedly warned that fossil fuel use must be drastically reduced to curb global warming, with the burning of coal, oil and gas identified as the main cause of the climate crisis.
green energy project
For Shell, which plans to become a net-zero company by 2050, the shareholder resolution is the first time it has been jointly submitted by current and former Shell employees, Follow This said. The resolution includes five current and 19 former Shell employees.
“The board needs to be transparent about how Shell plans to create value as demand for fossil fuels declines,” said Arjan Kaiser, one of the former Shell employees who supported the resolution. He held various positions at the company, including serving as chief strategy officer for a division of Shell formerly known as NewMotion.
“Shareholders and employees need this information to make informed decisions about whether to stay or go.”
Shell and BP have in recent years watered down their investment plans in green energy projects in favor of a renewed focus on their core hydrocarbon businesses.
Shell CEO Wael Sawan said in an interview with CNBC last year that gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) are essential to the energy transition, adding that the biggest contribution the company can make is through LNG sales.
The company expects global LNG demand to increase by about 60% by 2040, mainly due to factors such as economic growth in Asia and emissions reductions in heavy industry.
“Vital transparency”
BP, which became the first oil major to announce a commitment to become a net zero company by 2050, recently announced the appointment of its fourth chief executive officer in six years.
Meg O’Neill, currently CEO of Australian gas giant Woodside Energy, will succeed Murray Auchincloss as BP’s CEO from April 1, the company said.
“Shareholders rightly want critical transparency from BP regarding its long-term business strategy,” said Sarah E. Murphy, director of system-level investing at the Sierra Club Foundation, one of the co-filing investors.
“Several reliable analysts, including the IEA’s STEPS and APS scenarios, are predicting a decline in oil and gas demand. BP’s current strategy, which is predicated on growth, merits serious investor concern,” they added.
BP announced a green strategy U-turn in February last year, pledging to cut renewable energy spending and increase annual spending on its core oil and gas business.
The move was widely welcomed by energy analysts and included plans for the sale to reach $20 billion by the end of 2027. As part of this push, BP announced last month that it had agreed to sell a 65% stake in its lubricants business Castrol to Stonepeak for $6 billion.
