Shell Malaysia, a Malaysian subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, has announced in mid-January that it intends to reduce the number of employees in upstream sectors such as exploration, development and production by 250 to 300 over the next two years. Downstream sectors such as oil refining and transportation/sales were not subject to the personnel reduction. Shell plans to reduce its workforce by 9,000 people worldwide (about 10% of its total workforce) by the end of 2022 as it seeks to streamline its business with the energy market entering a transitional period. The personnel reduction in Malaysia is in line with this plan. A slump in fuel demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic is seen to have influenced the decision.

　Meanwhile, Shell Singapore, a subsidiary in Singapore, also announced at the end of last year that it would reduce the number of employees at its refinery. Shell Singapore would reduce its workforce to 800 from the current 1,300 by the end of 2023.