Shell PLC (LSE:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL) is mulling the future of its retail energy business in Britain, the Netherlands and Germany, putting thousands of jobs potentially at risk.
A strategic review is underway of both its home energy arm and its UK broadband, which had just been slated by regulator Ofcom for the number of complaints received (read more).
Shell said the review would take around three months to complete with no decision as yet on the futures of all or any of the businesses involved.
Energy supplies have been in turmoil since the onset of the Ukraine war with prices soaring and a swathe of small independent providers going bust as a consequence.
Shell said it had to inject US$1.5bn into its UK energy retail business in 2022 to weather the storm.
The UK business has 1.4mln customers, with a further 110,000 in Germany and 15,000 in the Netherlands.
The oil giant’s wholesale and business-to-business (B2B) energy supply businesses are not part of the review, which also does not include the US or Australia.
Shell’s home energy struggles are in stark contrast to its upstream operations, where profits this year are poised to hit record levels due to the surge in oil and gas prices that has caused all of the problems at the retail end.
The FTSE 100 group moved into the home market in 2018 when it acquired First Utility, with the name changed to Shell Energy Retail the following year.
Broadband has around 500,000 customers following Shell taking over the Post Office’s broadband customers in 2021.