據倫敦金融城早報4月6日報道，能源巨頭殼牌去年在北海的石油和天然氣生產沒有繳稅，盡管全球能源危機使其利潤飆升至逾190億美元。

這家總部位于倫敦的公司獲得了與北海舊石油平臺退役有關的退稅，這意味著該公司在2021年從英國財政部獲得了1.318億美元，這是昨日公布的該公司向英國政府支付款項的細節。

2016年，時任財政大臣的喬治 奧斯本(George Osborne)對稅收規則進行了修改，他希望在油價暴跌的情況下大幅削減退役石油項目的成本。

這些變化的目的是增加對該行業的投資，并激勵企業結束其業務。殼牌最大的退役項目是布倫特油氣田，由4個石油平臺組成。

殼牌披露這一消息之際，活動人士和政界人士正要求對這些能源巨頭征收暴利稅，此前不斷飆升的能源價格讓它們在去年獲得了豐厚利潤。

英國工黨前黨魁、前能源與氣候變化大臣埃德·米利班德(Ed Miliband)表示:“殼牌去年從納稅人那里得到了數百萬美元，同時享受著近200億美元的創紀錄利潤，這一事實比以往任何時候都更清楚，政府應該要求它們支付公平的份額。”

殼牌表示，自1976年投產以來，政府從其最大的北海布倫特(Brent)油氣田獲得了200億英鎊的稅收收入，而且它收到的總退款將“大大低于已繳納的稅款”。

季廷偉 摘譯自 倫敦金融城早報

原文如下：

Shell goes tax free in the North Sea after ￡100m government refund

Energy giant Shell paid no tax on its North Sea oil and gas production last year even as the global energy crunch saw it profits soar to more than $19bn.

The London-headquartered firm bagged tax refunds relating to the decommissioning of old oil platforms in the North Sea, meaning it received $131.8m from the UK treasury in 2021, according to details of its payments to government released yesterday.

Changes to the tax rules were introduced in 2016 by then-chancellor George Osborne, who looked to slash the cost of decommissioning oil projects amid plunging prices.

The changes were aimed at increasing investment into the industry and incentivising firms to wind down their operations. Shell’s largest decommissioning project is the Brent oil and gasfield, consisting of four oil platforms.

The disclosure from Shell comes amid demand from campaigners and politicians for a windfall tax to be slapped on the energy majors, after soaring energy prices saw them rake in bumper profits last year.

Ed Miliband, Labour’s shadow secretary for climate change, said: “The fact that Shell is receiving millions from the taxpayer whilst enjoying near record profits of almost $20 billion last year makes it clearer than ever that they should be required by the government to pay their fair share.”

Shell says the government has received ￡20bn in tax revenues from its largest North Sea  Brent oil and gasfield since it started producing in 1976, and that the total refunds it receives will be “significantly less than the tax payments made”.