Shell Nederland Raffinaderij B.V., a subsidiary of Shell plc, has announced it will not restart construction of its biofuels facility at the Shell Energy and Chemicals Park in Rotterdam. Work on the project began in 2022, but following a detailed commercial and technical review, the company concluded it would not be competitive enough to move forward, reports Shell.com.
Machteld de Haan, Shell’s President for Downstream, Renewables and Energy Solutions, said the decision was taken after assessing market conditions and costs. “We found the project would not be competitive enough to meet demand for affordable, low-carbon products,” she explained. “It was a difficult call, but the right one, as we want to focus our investments on projects that meet customer needs and create value for shareholders.”
De Haan added that Shell continues to see biofuels as important for the future energy system. “We remain committed to low-carbon fuels, including sustainable aviation fuel, where Shell is already one of the world’s largest traders and suppliers,” she said.
Shell has been investing heavily in the energy transition. Between 2023 and 2024, the company put about $8 billion into lower-carbon options such as renewable power, carbon capture and storage (CCS), hydrogen, and biofuels. In 2024 alone, Shell traded over 10 billion litres of low-carbon fuels, selling ten times more than it produced, and became one of the world’s leading suppliers of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
The company stressed that the Netherlands remains a key hub for its operations, covering the full energy chain from oil and gas production to retail. In recent years, Shell has invested €6.5 billion in energy transition projects in the country. These include the Porthos CCS project for CO₂ storage, the Holland Hydrogen 1 renewable hydrogen project, and upgrades such as new furnaces and electrification of manufacturing processes at Shell Chemicals Park Moerdijk.
