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Shell's Perdido oil and gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico

Deep-water oil and gas

Shell’s oil and gas production is increasingly from our innovative deep-water business, which produces higher-margin and lower-carbon barrels, aligned with our strategy to deliver more value with less emissions.

What is deep-water oil and gas?

Deep-water drilling involves extracting oil and natural gas from beneath the ocean floor at significant depths, typically greater than 200 metres (around 656 feet).

This process requires specialised equipment and techniques to safely and efficiently navigate  the challenging conditions of deep-water environments.

Shell’s deep-water oil and gas business

Shell has a long history of using its knowledge, experience, innovation and proven deep-water technologies to unlock energy resources safely,  efficiently and sustainably. 

The deep-water era for Shell began more than 40 years ago, when a team of engineers, scientists, and explorers reimagined the possibilities for offshore oil and gas production in the Gulf of America, formerly named Gulf of Mexico. In 1978, Shell’s Cognac platform marked a groundbreaking achievement as the first to produce oil in waters exceeding 1,000 feet in depth.

Since this pioneering feat, Shell has consistently reached remarkable technological milestones, excelling in the design, construction and operation of world-class oil and gas assets in varying water depths.

Shell Cognac

Shell's deep-water projects

Shell continues to invest in profitable and carbon-competitive oil and gas projects.

Whale, Shell's latest oil and gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico

Gulf of America

In the Gulf of America, Shell is the largest operator and has one of the lowest greenhouse gas intensities in the world for producing oil, compared with other oil and gas producing members of the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers.

Shell’s operations here include the Perdido platform, one of the world’s deepest offshore drilling and production facilities. Perdido operates in water depths of up to 2,450 meters (8,000 feet), showcasing our expertise in ultra-deep-water exploration.

Whale, our latest oil and gas platform in the Gulf of America, represents Shell’s cost-efficient approach to deep-water development through replication and standardisation. It is a close replica of Vito, which started production in early 2023. Sparta, scheduled to start production in 2028, will follow a similar design.

Find out more about Shell’s deep-water operations in the Gulf of America
Stones robotics team, Shell

Innovation in deep-water oil and gas

Shell is taking an innovative approach to deep-water development, using standardised, simplified designs that reduce costs and provide quicker returns. For example, sharing knowledge and resources between Vito and Whale has resulted in 50% faster hull engineering and 75% fewer re-work issues in manufacturing.

We employ state-of-the-art drilling techniques to reach deep-water reservoirs safely and efficiently. Our use of remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and advanced subsea systems allows us to operate in challenging environments with precision and care.

At our Stones asset in the Gulf of America, we achieved the first-ever offshore cargo oil tank inspection using robotics in 2024. This greatly reduces safety exposure as well as cost.

Decarbonising our deep-water operations

Shell is proactively managing the greenhouse gas intensity of our deep-water operations through innovative project designs, efficient operations, and strategic handling of late-life assets.

Since 2016, we have achieved a 40% reduction in methane emissions in the Gulf of America. In 2023, emissions from Shell’s Gulf of America assets were 5% below our planned targets, with intensity levels 9% below expectations.

Additionally, we invest in research and development in Brazil, collaborating with more than 25 universities and research centres. A substantial portion of this investment is dedicated to reducing the greenhouse gas intensity of oil and gas exploration.

Shell's Perdido oil and gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico

Cautionary Note

The companies in which Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this content “Shell”, “Shell Group” and “Group” are sometimes used for convenience to reference Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words “we”, “us” and “our” are also used to refer to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ‘‘Subsidiaries’’, “Shell subsidiaries” and “Shell companies” as used in this content refer to entities over which Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. The terms “joint venture”, “joint operations”, “joint arrangements”, and “associates” may also be used to refer to a commercial arrangement in which Shell has a direct or indirect ownership interest with one or more parties. The term “Shell interest” is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

Forward-Looking statements

This content contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Shell to market risks and statements expressing management’s expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as “aim”; “ambition”; ‘‘anticipate’’; “aspire”, “aspiration”, ‘‘believe’’; “commit”; “commitment”; ‘‘could’’; “desire”; ‘‘estimate’’; ‘‘expect’’; ‘‘goals’’; ‘‘intend’’; ‘‘may’’; “milestones”; ‘‘objectives’’; ‘‘outlook’’; ‘‘plan’’; ‘‘probably’’; ‘‘project’’; ‘‘risks’’; “schedule”; ‘‘seek’’; ‘‘should’’; ‘‘target’’; “vision”; ‘‘will’’; “would” and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this content, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell’s products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks, including climate change; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, judicial, fiscal and regulatory developments including tariffs and regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; (m) risks associated with the impact of pandemics, regional conflicts, such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the conflict in the Middle East, and a significant cyber security, data privacy or IT incident; (n) the pace of the energy transition; and (o) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this content are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Shell plc’s Form 20-F and amendment thereto for the year ended December 31, 2024 (available at www.shell.com/investors/news-and-filings/sec-filings.html and www.sec.gov

).

These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward-looking statements contained in this content and should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this content. Neither Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this content.

Shell’s net carbon intensity

Also, in this content we may refer to Shell’s “net carbon intensity” (NCI), which includes Shell’s carbon emissions from the production of our energy products, our suppliers’ carbon emissions in supplying energy for that production and our customers’ carbon emissions associated with their use of the energy products we sell. Shell’s NCI also includes the emissions associated with the production and use of energy products produced by others which Shell purchases for resale. Shell only controls its own emissions. The use of the terms Shell’s “net carbon intensity” or NCI is for convenience only and not intended to suggest these emissions are those of Shell plc or its subsidiaries.

Shell’s net-zero emissions target

Shell’s operating plan and outlook are forecasted for a three-year period and ten-year period, respectively, and are updated every year. They reflect the current economic environment and what we can reasonably expect to see over the next three and ten years. Accordingly, the outlook reflects our Scope 1, Scope 2 and NCI targets over the next ten years. However, Shell’s operating plan and outlook cannot reflect our 2050 net-zero emissions target, as this target is outside our planning period. Such future operating plans and outlooks could include changes to our portfolio, efficiency improvements and the use of carbon capture and storage and carbon credits. In the future, as society moves towards net-zero emissions, we expect Shell’s operating plans and outlooks to reflect this movement. However, if society is not net zero in 2050, as of today, there would be significant risk that Shell may not meet this target.

Forward-Looking non-GAAP measures

This content may contain certain forward-looking non-GAAP measures such as adjusted earnings and divestments. We are unable to provide a reconciliation of these forward-looking non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures because certain information needed to reconcile those non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures is dependent on future events some of which are outside the control of Shell, such as oil and gas prices, interest rates and exchange rates. Moreover, estimating such GAAP measures with the required precision necessary to provide a meaningful reconciliation is extremely difficult and could not be accomplished without unreasonable effort. Non-GAAP measures in respect of future periods which cannot be reconciled to the most comparable GAAP financial measure are calculated in a manner which is consistent with the accounting policies applied in Shell plc’s consolidated financial statements.

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We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this content that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F and any amendment thereto, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov.