Shell financials reveal doubled profits

Royal Dutch Shell today released its second-quarter and half-year 2010 unaudited results.

The company’s second-quarter 2010 earnings, on a current cost of supplies (CCS) basis, were $4.5bn (£3.75m) compared with $2.3bn a year ago. Basic CCS earnings per share increased by 95 per cent against the same quarter a year ago.

Second-quarter 2010 CCS earnings were $4.2bn compared with $3.1bn in the second quarter of 2009.

Cash flow from operating activities for second-quarter 2010 was $8.1bn and net capital investment for the quarter was $5.6bn.

Total dividends paid to shareholders during second-quarter 2010 were $2.4bn.

Peter Voser, Royal Dutch Shell chief executive officer, said: ‘We are delivering on our strategy. Shell’s cost programmes have delivered more than $3.5bn of annualised underlying savings.

‘Our investments have underpinned a five per cent increase in oil and gas production for the quarter, a 34 per cent increase in LNG sales volumes, and an 18 per cent increase in chemicals sales volumes.

‘This is a good performance from Shell, despite today’s challenging macro economic conditions. We are on track for growth.’