Shell posts $18.5 billion adjusted earnings for 2025 as cash flow declines

Shell (LSE:SHEL) reported adjusted earnings of $18.5 billion for 2025, compared with $23.7 billion recorded in 2024.

Cash flow from operating activities totaled $42.9 billion during the year, down from $54.7 billion in the previous year. Free cash flow reached $26.1 billion, compared with $39.5 billion in 2024.

The company continued to return significant capital to shareholders. Total distributions amounted to about $22.4 billion, including $8.5 billion paid in dividends and $13.9 billion used for share buybacks. These payouts represented roughly 52% of operating cash flow, placing them at the upper end of Shell’s 40%–50% distribution target.

Shell reported total capital expenditure of $18.9 billion, while cash capital expenditure came in at $20.9 billion in 2025, within the company’s planned annual investment range of $20 billion to $22 billion.

Operationally, Shell produced around 2.8 million barrels of oil equivalent per day available for sale in 2025, slightly below the 2.836 million boe/d reported the year before. LNG liquefaction volumes for the year totaled 28 million tonnes.

The company also made progress on cost efficiency and emissions goals. Shell reported $5.1 billion in structural cost reductions compared with 2022 levels and lowered Scope 1 and 2 emissions to 53 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2025, down from 58 million tonnes the previous year.

The results were released a day after Reuters reported that Shell, the world’s largest trader of liquefied natural gas, declared force majeure on LNG cargoes it purchases from QatarEnergy and supplies to customers worldwide. The move followed Qatar’s suspension of production at its 77 million-tonne-per-year LNG facility and its own declaration of force majeure on shipments.

According to analysts cited in the report, Shell receives about 6.8 million tonnes per year of Qatari LNG under supply agreements, while TotalEnergies is estimated to receive around 5.2 mtpa.

More about Shell

Shell (LSE:SHEL) (NYSE:SHEL) is a global energy company engaged in oil and gas exploration, production, liquefied natural gas trading, refining, chemicals, and energy marketing. The company is also investing in lower-carbon energy solutions while continuing to supply oil, natural gas, and related products worldwide.