Shell Profits Spike to a Record $27.6B

Soaring crude prices and new oil and gas projects drove Royal Dutch Shell to 2007 profits of $27.6 billion—a new record for a British corporation—despite declining production. While critics branded the results “obscene” and called for a windfall tax, Shell’s CEO called them “satisfactory” and warned that 2008 would be a tougher year for the company as production costs soar and reserves dwindle, reports the Guardian.

Shell’s output was down 2% in 2007, said CEO Jeroen van der Veer, the fifth straight year output fell. He said violence in Nigeria was partly to blame. Shell reported fourth-quarter pre-tax profit at  $13.3 billion, up  from $9.1 billion a year ago. For the year, pre-tax profits were $50.6 billion, compared to $44.6 billion in 2006. (More Shell Oil stories.)