Nearly all of that was related to downgrading margins in refineries in Asia and Europe. Van Beurden said: “There are substantial pressures on the industry from excess capacity, changing product demand, and new oil supplies from liquids-rich shales.” When he started the job at the beginning of the year, Van Beurden immediately made his mark by calling for “better operational discipline” at Shell and issuing the group’s first profit warning in a decade.
