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Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Ecowende, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)

Laatste fundering toonaangevend Nederlands ecologisch windpark op zee op z’n plek

Donderdag 9 april 2026 is de laatste monopaal voor de 52 windturbines van windpark Hollandse Kust West op z’n plek gezet in de Noordzee. Met deze prestatie van joint venture Ecowende is de totstandkoming van dit toonaangevende, ecologische windpark weer een flinke stap dichterbij gekomen.

In Ecowende werken Shell, Eneco en het Japanse Chubu samen. Deze partijen bouwen samen het nieuwe windpark met minimale impact op de natuur. Daarom zijn voor het installeren van de monopalen (de funderingen waarop de turbines worden gemonteerd) verschillende nieuwe technieken gebruikt.

Innovatieve heimethodes

Zo werd bij zes monopalen een test gedaan om ze met trillingen in de zeebodem te krijgen, met een vibrerende hamer, in plaats van met traditionele heitechnieken. Bij drie daarvan werd de methode gecombineerd met waterjets. Daarbij verminderen krachtige waterstralen binnen de monopaal de weerstand van de zeebodem bij plaatsing. Bij traditionele heimethodes op zee wordt een gordijn van luchtbellen rondom de installatieplek geblazen om het onderwatergeluid voor het zeeleven zoveel mogelijk te beperken.

Gaten in monopiles voor vissen

De monopalen van Hollandse Kust West hebben gaten voor kabeldoorvoer, waterkwaliteit en corrosiebescherming. Ecowende gaat onderzoek doen naar de condities in deze gaten en hoe vissoorten deze gaten gebruiken, bijvoorbeeld als schuilplaats. Daarom hebben vier monopalen extra gaten gekregen, zodat meer vissen erin kunnen schuilen. Ecowende houdt de omstandigheden drie jaar lang met camera's en sensoren in de gaten. De resultaten vergelijkt Ecowende met die uit onderzoek bij andere windparken.

Volledig operationeel dit jaar

“Voor Ecowende markeert het afronden van de installatie van de funderingen een cruciale mijlpaal op weg naar een volledig operationeel windpark voor het einde van het jaar”, zegt Folkert Visser, projectdirecteur Ecowende. “Dat we daarbij ook voor het eerst op commerciële schaal innovatieve installatiemethoden succesvol hebben kunnen toepassen, draagt bij aan het minimaliseren van de verstoring van het mariene ecosysteem tijdens de bouw. Niet alleen van ons windpark, maar ook van toekomstige windparken in Nederland en daarbuiten.”

Over Hollandse Kust West

Hollandse Kust West is het vijfde windpark van Shell in Nederland en het vierde van Shell (en partners) in het Nederlandse deel van de Noordzee. Het ligt op zo’n 53 kilometer uit de kust van IJmuiden. De bouw begon op 2 december 2025 met de installatie van de eerste monopile op zee. De ervaringen bij het bouwen en runnen van dit meest ecologische windpark worden gedeeld, zodat de hele energiesector in Nederland en daarbuiten als geheel ervan kunnen profiteren.

Cautionary note

The companies in which Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this announcement “Shell”, “Shell Group” and “Group” are sometimes used for convenience to reference Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words “we”, “us” and “our” are also used to refer to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ‘‘Subsidiaries’’, “Shell subsidiaries” and “Shell companies” as used in this announcement refer to entities over which Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. The terms “joint venture”, “joint operations”, “joint arrangements”, and “associates” may also be used to refer to a commercial arrangement in which Shell has a direct or indirect ownership interest with one or more parties.  The term “Shell interest” is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

Forward-Looking statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Shell to market risks and statements expressing management’s expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as “aim”; “ambition”; ‘‘anticipate’’; “aspire”, “aspiration”, ‘‘believe’’; “commit”; “commitment”; ‘‘could’’; “desire”; ‘‘estimate’’; ‘‘expect’’; ‘‘goals’’; ‘‘intend’’; ‘‘may’’; “milestones”; ‘‘objectives’’; ‘‘outlook’’; ‘‘plan’’; ‘‘probably’’; ‘‘project’’; ‘‘risks’’; “schedule”; ‘‘seek’’; ‘‘should’’; ‘‘target’’; “vision”; ‘‘will’’; “would” and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this announcement, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell’s products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks, including climate change; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, judicial, fiscal and regulatory developments including tariffs and regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; (m) risks associated with the impact of pandemics, regional conflicts, such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the conflict in the Middle East, and a significant cyber security, data privacy or IT incident; (n) the pace of the energy transition; and (o) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Shell plc’s Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2025 (available at www.shell.com/investors/news-and-filings/sec-filings.html and www.sec.gov

). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward-looking statements contained in this announcement and should be considered by the reader.  Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this announcement, April 14, 2026. Neither Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement.

Shell’s net carbon intensity

Also, in this announcement we may refer to Shell’s “net carbon intensity” (NCI), which includes Shell’s carbon emissions from the production of our energy products, our suppliers’ carbon emissions in supplying energy for that production and our customers’ carbon emissions associated with their use of the energy products we sell. Shell’s NCI also includes the emissions associated with the production and use of energy products produced by others which Shell purchases for resale. Shell only controls its own emissions. The use of the terms Shell’s “net carbon intensity” or NCI is for convenience only and not intended to suggest these emissions are those of Shell plc or its subsidiaries.

Shell’s net-zero emissions target

Shell’s operating plan and outlook are forecasted for a three-year period and ten-year period, respectively, and are updated every year. They reflect the current economic environment and what we can reasonably expect to see over the next three and ten years. Accordingly, the outlook reflects our combined Scope 1 and 2 target, NCI target and our oil products ambition over the next ten years. However, Shell’s operating plan and outlook cannot reflect our 2050 net-zero emissions target, as this target is outside our planning period. Such future operating plans and outlooks could include changes to our portfolio, efficiency improvements and the use of carbon capture and storage and carbon credits. In the future, as society moves towards net-zero emissions, we expect Shell’s operating plans and outlooks to reflect this movement. However, if society is not net zero in 2050, as of today, there would be significant risk that Shell may not meet this target.

Forward-Looking non-GAAP measures

This announcement may contain certain forward-looking non-GAAP measures. We are unable to provide a reconciliation of these forward-looking non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures because certain information needed to reconcile those non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures is dependent on future events some of which are outside the control of Shell, such as oil and gas prices, interest rates and exchange rates. Moreover, estimating such GAAP measures with the required precision necessary to provide meaningful reconciliation is extremely difficult and could not be accomplished without unreasonable effort. Non-GAAP measures in respect of future periods which cannot be reconciled to the most comparable GAAP financial measure are calculated in a manner which is consistent with the accounting policies applied in Shell plc’s consolidated financial statements.

The contents of websites referred to in this announcement do not form part of this announcement.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this announcement that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC.  Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov

Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende), 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het laden van materiaal voor Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende), 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het laden van materiaal voor Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende), 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
1 / 5Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende), 9 april 2026
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
2 / 5Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
3 / 5Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) met de VibroJet-techniek door Van Oord, 9 april 2026
Het laden van materiaal voor Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
4 / 5Het laden van materiaal voor Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026
Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026 (Foto: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
5 / 5Het plaatsen van een van de laatste monopalen van Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende) door Van Oord, 9 april 2026

English version

Installation of one of the last monopiles of offshore windfarm Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende), the Netherlands, 9 April 2026 (Photo: Mat Zwart Fotografie)
Installation of one of the last monopiles of offshore windfarm Hollandse Kust West (Ecowende), the Netherlands, 9 April 2026

Final foundation of leading ecological offshore wind farm in place

14 April 2026

On Thursday 9 April 2026, the final monopile for the 52 wind turbines of the Hollandse Kust West wind farm, off the coast of the Netherlands, was installed in the North Sea. With this achievement by joint venture Ecowende, the realisation of this leading ecological wind farm has moved a significant step closer.

Ecowende is a collaboration between Shell, Eneco and the Japanese company Chubu. Together, they aim to construct the new wind farm with minimal impact on nature. For this reason, several new techniques were used to install the monopiles (the foundations on which the turbines will be mounted).

Innovative piling methods

For six monopiles, a trial was conducted in which vibrations were used to install them into the seabed using a vibrating hammer, instead of traditional piling techniques. For three of these monopiles, the method was combined with water jetting. Powerful water jets inside the monopile reduce resistance from the seabed during installation. With traditional offshore piling methods, a curtain of air bubbles is blown around the installation site to minimise underwater noise for marine life as much as possible.

Holes in monopiles for fish

The monopiles at Hollandse Kust West contain openings for cable routing, water quality monitoring and corrosion protection. Ecowende will investigate the conditions within these openings and how fish species use them, for example as shelter. For this reason, four monopiles have been fitted with additional openings so that more fish can take refuge in them. Ecowende will monitor the conditions for three years using cameras and sensors. The results will be compared with findings from research carried out at other wind farms.

Fully operational this year

"For Ecowende, completing the installation of the foundations marks a crucial milestone on the way to a fully operational wind farm before the end of the year", Folkert Visser, Project Director of Ecowende, says. "The fact that we were also able to successfully apply innovative installation methods at commercial scale for the first time further contributes to minimising the disturbance of the marine ecosystem during construction. Not only of our wind farm, but of future wind farms in the Netherlands and beyond."

About Hollandse Kust West

Hollandse Kust West is the fifth wind farm in the Netherlands built and operated by Shell (and partners), and the fourth of such off the Dutch coast. It is located approximately 53 kilometres (33 miles) offshore from the town of IJmuiden. Construction began on 2 December 2025 with the installation of the first monopile at sea. The experiences gained from building and operating this most ecological wind farm will be shared so that the wider energy sector in the Netherlands and abroad can benefit as a whole.

Cautionary note

The companies in which Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this announcement “Shell”, “Shell Group” and “Group” are sometimes used for convenience to reference Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words “we”, “us” and “our” are also used to refer to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ‘‘Subsidiaries’’, “Shell subsidiaries” and “Shell companies” as used in this announcement refer to entities over which Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. The terms “joint venture”, “joint operations”, “joint arrangements”, and “associates” may also be used to refer to a commercial arrangement in which Shell has a direct or indirect ownership interest with one or more parties.  The term “Shell interest” is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

Forward-Looking statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Shell to market risks and statements expressing management’s expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as “aim”; “ambition”; ‘‘anticipate’’; “aspire”, “aspiration”, ‘‘believe’’; “commit”; “commitment”; ‘‘could’’; “desire”; ‘‘estimate’’; ‘‘expect’’; ‘‘goals’’; ‘‘intend’’; ‘‘may’’; “milestones”; ‘‘objectives’’; ‘‘outlook’’; ‘‘plan’’; ‘‘probably’’; ‘‘project’’; ‘‘risks’’; “schedule”; ‘‘seek’’; ‘‘should’’; ‘‘target’’; “vision”; ‘‘will’’; “would” and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this announcement, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell’s products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks, including climate change; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, judicial, fiscal and regulatory developments including tariffs and regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; (m) risks associated with the impact of pandemics, regional conflicts, such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the conflict in the Middle East, and a significant cyber security, data privacy or IT incident; (n) the pace of the energy transition; and (o) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Shell plc’s Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2025 (available at www.shell.com/investors/news-and-filings/sec-filings.html and www.sec.gov

). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward-looking statements contained in this announcement and should be considered by the reader.  Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this announcement, April 14, 2026. Neither Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement.

Shell’s net carbon intensity

Also, in this announcement we may refer to Shell’s “net carbon intensity” (NCI), which includes Shell’s carbon emissions from the production of our energy products, our suppliers’ carbon emissions in supplying energy for that production and our customers’ carbon emissions associated with their use of the energy products we sell. Shell’s NCI also includes the emissions associated with the production and use of energy products produced by others which Shell purchases for resale. Shell only controls its own emissions. The use of the terms Shell’s “net carbon intensity” or NCI is for convenience only and not intended to suggest these emissions are those of Shell plc or its subsidiaries.

Shell’s net-zero emissions target

Shell’s operating plan and outlook are forecasted for a three-year period and ten-year period, respectively, and are updated every year. They reflect the current economic environment and what we can reasonably expect to see over the next three and ten years. Accordingly, the outlook reflects our combined Scope 1 and 2 target, NCI target and our oil products ambition over the next ten years. However, Shell’s operating plan and outlook cannot reflect our 2050 net-zero emissions target, as this target is outside our planning period. Such future operating plans and outlooks could include changes to our portfolio, efficiency improvements and the use of carbon capture and storage and carbon credits. In the future, as society moves towards net-zero emissions, we expect Shell’s operating plans and outlooks to reflect this movement. However, if society is not net zero in 2050, as of today, there would be significant risk that Shell may not meet this target.

Forward-Looking non-GAAP measures

This announcement may contain certain forward-looking non-GAAP measures. We are unable to provide a reconciliation of these forward-looking non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures because certain information needed to reconcile those non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures is dependent on future events some of which are outside the control of Shell, such as oil and gas prices, interest rates and exchange rates. Moreover, estimating such GAAP measures with the required precision necessary to provide meaningful reconciliation is extremely difficult and could not be accomplished without unreasonable effort. Non-GAAP measures in respect of future periods which cannot be reconciled to the most comparable GAAP financial measure are calculated in a manner which is consistent with the accounting policies applied in Shell plc’s consolidated financial statements.

The contents of websites referred to in this announcement do not form part of this announcement.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this announcement that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC.  Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov

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