Exclusive: Shell plans major restructuring around climate drive, CEO tells employees

FILE PHOTO: Ben van Beurden, Chief Executive Officer of Royal Dutch Shell, attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia May 25, 2018. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin/File Photo

Royal Dutch Shell <RDSa.L> will announce a major restructuring by the end of the year as the energy company prepares to accelerate its shift towards low-carbon, CEO Ben van Beurden told employees, a company source said.

In a video interview published on Shell's internal website, van Beurden said that the restructuring would involve job cuts as part of broad cost reductions, although no figures have been decided yet, according to sources who saw the interview.

FILE PHOTO: The logo of Royal Dutch Shell is seen at a petrol station in Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, Belgium January 30, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

"Ben spoke about positioning the company in the energy transition," one of the sources said. "The company will announce the new shape of the organisation by the end of the year."

The new structure will not take effect before 2021.

"Over the coming months we will go through a comprehensive review of the company. Where appropriate we will redesign our organisation to adapt to a different future and emerge stronger," Shell said in a statement.

GRAPHIC: Shell's climate ambition - https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/ce/ygdpzeekvwa/Shell%20climate.png

(Reporting by Ron Bousso; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)