The Netherlands: What the Dutch court carbon emissions ruling means for Shell

A Dutch court on Wednesday ordered Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) to significantly deepen planned greenhouse gas emission cuts, in a landmark ruling that could pave the way for legal action against energy companies around the world. read more

Shell said it was "disappointed" by the ruling which it plans to appeal.

Here are some key points about the ruling:

WHAT WAS THE RULING? The district court ordered Shell to cut its absolute carbon emissions by 45% by 2030 compared to 2019 levels. Shell currently aims to reduce the carbon intensity of products it sells by 20% over the same period from a 2016 baseline.

DOES THE RULING AFFECT SHELL'S GLOBAL OPERATIONS? Yes. The reduction relates to Shell's global operations and is not limited to the Netherlands, the court ruling said. WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR SHELL? The ruling said that "it is up to RDS (Royal Dutch Shell) to design the reduction obligation, taking account of its current obligations and other relevant circumstances." Shell earlier this year announced a strategy to become a net zero emissions company by 2050, meaning its absolute emissions will also be net zero at that point. It has stated that it believes its emissions peaked in 2018.[USN:L1N2KH0LV] ABSOLUTE TARGETS VS INTENSITY TARGETS? The court ordered Shell to reduce absolute emissions by 45%. Shell's short and medium-term targets are intensity based. Intensity-based targets measure the amount of greenhouse gas emissions per unit of energy produced. That means that absolute emissions can rise with growing production, even if the headline intensity metric falls. At its annual general meeting this month, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden rejected setting absolute reduction targets, saying: "Reducing absolute emissions at this point in time is predominantly possible by shrinking the business."

HOW BIG ARE SHELL'S GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS? Shell, the world's largest oil and gas trader, produced 1.38 billion tonnes of CO2 in 2020, roughly 4.5% of global energy-related emissions that year, based on International Energy Agency figures. Shell's 2020 emissions were down from 1.65 billion tonnes the previous year, largely as a result of a fall in oil and gas demand due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Read More at: Explainer: What the Dutch court carbon emissions ruling means for Shell | Reuters

Poland: Protests as Poland's Radical Right Wing Government Rejects Top Court Ruling

Poland's Government overrules top 
court and Council of Europe

Poland's Right Wing Law and Justice (PiS) government on Saturday, March 12, said it would ignore a Constitutional Tribunal ruling invalidating its legal reforms, a day after a European rights body argued the controversial changes to the top court threatened democracy and the rule of law.

Since winning October elections, the PiS has pushed through a number of reforms in the media, constitutional court and other institutions that have garnered criticism and concern from the EU, United States and other rights institutions.

The latest battle lines have been drawn over the constitutional court, after PiS passed amendents in December increasing the number of judges to make a ruling, requiring the court to review cases in the order they were received, and changing the threshold for a decision from a simple majority to a two-thirds majority.

Critics argue the changes are designed to slow down the court and render it dysfunctional in order to prevent judges from blocking controversial PiS legislation.

On Friday,March 11 the Venice Commission, an advisory body of the Council of Europe, made a non-binding judgment that the changes had "crippled" the Constitutional Tribunal and "endangered not only the rule of law but also the functioning of the democratic system."

The Council of Europe also said the government must follow the constitutional court's decision.

That judgment is likely to put Poland on a fresh collision course with the EU, which has referred Poland to a review at the European Commission over concerns of a retrenchment of democracy and rule of law.

A negative decision from the EU's executive body could lead to Poland losing its voting rights at the EU level.

On Saturday, Poland's government said it would ask parliament to review the Venice Commission's judgment but would still not recognize the Constitutional Tribunal's ruling.

The government has refused to officially publish the top court's findings, effectively blocking them from going into force.

Read more: Protests as Poland rejects top court ruling | News | DW.COM | 12.03.2016