After clearing the last regulatory hurdle, Royal Dutch Shell said its planned merger with BG Group will require restructuring and a reduction in head counts. This after the company’s $70-billion dollar merger with BG Group was given the go-ahead by Chinese authorities.
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Reports say Royal Dutch Shell plans to cut 2,800 jobs world-wide.
North Sea oil giant Shell has confirmed it is to cut up to 2800 jobs across its operations under a proposed takeover of BG Group.
Before this, Shell said it would trim7,500 staff and contractor jobs. “It is too early to comment on this and we will in any case first engage with employees affected”.
“Further detailed work will be undertaken on the details of the proposed restructuring as part of ongoing integration planning”, Shell said. To convince shareholders to approve the deal, Shell has promised cost savings.
Shell announced the deal after a period of prolonged oil price weakness at the end of past year and the start of 2016.
Oil has dropped to the lowest in nearly seven years as the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries refuses to curb output to tackle a supply glut.
Shell said in a statement Monday that “the deal remains on track for completion in early 2016”.
Shell’s assurances have failed to convince the markets that the deal will close.
The combination will transform Shell into the world’s top liquefied natural gas (LNG) trader and a major offshore oil producer focused on Brazil’s rapidly-developing sub-salt oil basin that would rival Exxon Mobil’s position as the world’s biggest global oil company.
Now the deal has the green light from China, shareholders at the two companies will decide whether the tie-up should go ahead.
However, it is understood that Shell’s chief executive, Ben van Beurden, was able to meet the president of China’s ministry of commerce, Gao Hucheng, to discuss the deal.
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It marked the completion of the final pre-conditional approvals.
