A lower court had ordered the company to cut emissions by 45 percent by 2030, but the oil giant argued that a single firm should not be hit with arbitrary pollution-reduction requirements.

But as world leaders gather for the UN’s Cop29 climate summit, the Dutch court of appeal annulled the previous verdict, ruling that – despite Shell having a responsibility to cut emissions – it was unable to determine a fitting reduction target for oil and gas companies, based on the available science and data.

A Dutch appeals court has overturned a landmark ruling that ordered energy company Shell to cut its carbon emissions by net 45% by 2030 compared to 2019 levels.