Bumper profits at BP and Shell revive calls for windfall tax to tackle fuel poverty
CNN
News that Britain's biggest oil companies made $32 billion in profit last year is stoking calls for the UK government to impose a temporary tax on their earnings to help households pay soaring energy bills.
Reporting earnings on Tuesday, BP (BP) posted an annual profit of almost $12.9 billion. Shell (RDSA) reported a profit of $19.3 billion last week after what it described as a "momentous" year.
Profits at both companies have been boosted by a huge rebound in oil and natural gas prices after they collapsed at the start of the pandemic. The bumper earnings have allowed them to accelerate investments in lower carbon and renewable energy projects while also handing back billions of dollars to investors in the form of dividends and share buybacks.
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