Shell says it will halt operations in Russia, apologizes for buying Russian oil

Ben van Beurden, Shell’s CEO, apologized for buying Russian crude oil last week and said that any profits would be donated to provide humanitarian support during the Ukraine crisis.

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“We are acutely aware that our decision last week to purchase a cargo of Russian crude oil to be refined into products like petrol and diesel … was not the right one and we are sorry,” van Beurden said in a statement. He pledged to “commit profits from the limited, remaining amounts of Russian oil we will process to a dedicated fund” and promised to aid humanitarian agencies over the coming weeks.

Van Beurden said there were “incredibly difficult trade-offs that must be made during the war in Ukraine.”

This week, the national average gasoline price in the United States climbed over $4, according to the AAA Gas Prices website, a record since July 2008. The upward march in global oil prices is set to continue and inflate what drivers in the United States and elsewhere pay at the pump.

U.S. officials are looking for ways to take the pressure off global energy markets and ease the pocket pain of consumers, but analysts warn there is no supplier that could easily supplant Russia, the world’s third-largest energy producer. Oil prices hit their highest point in over a decade on Monday as it appeared increasingly likely that Western sanctions would not spare the Russian energy industry.

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This week, Russia threatened to cut the flow of gas to Europe through a major pipeline, which could leave countries facing oil prices of more than $300 per barrel, according to a Russian official.

“It is absolutely clear that a rejection of Russian oil would lead to catastrophic consequences for the global market,” Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in a statement Monday on state television. “The surge in prices would be unpredictable. It would be $300 per barrel, if not more,” he said.

The Biden administration has pushed its allies to support a ban on Russian oil imports. European Union leaders will meet in Versailles, France, on Thursday to discuss the possibility of phasing out the bloc’s dependency on Russian energy.

Dozens of global businesses from vodka brands to sports teams have stated their intention to stop selling Russian products or pull out of the Russian market over the Ukraine conflict.

Russia boycott: A list of global campaigns that are underway in support of Ukraine