NEW YORK, Jan 7, 2026, 03:29 EST — Market closed
- Shell’s U.S.-listed shares fell 2.8% on Tuesday to $72.90.
- Vietnam’s Petrovietnam Gas picked Shell for its first term LNG tender, with deliveries from 2027 to 2031.
- Investors are weighing buybacks and new upstream spending against softer crude prices.
Shell Plc’s U.S.-listed shares (SHEL) fell 2.8% on Tuesday to $72.90. After U.S. markets shut, Vietnam’s Petrovietnam Gas said it awarded Shell its first term tender for liquefied natural gas (LNG), the super-chilled fuel shipped by tanker, with supplies running from 2027 to 2031. The stock’s $72.85 low left the $73 area in focus ahead of the next session. 1
The Vietnam award gives Shell a foothold in a market shifting away from one-off spot purchases and toward longer contracts. For investors, it is another data point in a bigger question: how hard Big Oil can lean on growth while defending shareholder payouts when crude prices look capped.
Oil extended losses on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington struck a deal to import $2 billion worth of Venezuelan crude, which analysts said would add supply. Brent was down 1.3% at $59.89 a barrel and U.S. crude fell 1.7% to $56.13 by 0550 GMT. “Venezuela’s oil exports to the United States have first and foremost disrupted the U.S. market, which will also deepen the global oversupply,” Haitong Futures analyst Yang An said; Morgan Stanley estimated a surplus of up to 3 million barrels per day in the first half of 2026. 2
Petrovietnam Gas said Shell will deliver LNG on a delivered ex-ship basis, meaning Shell covers shipping to the buyer’s terminal. The cargoes are set for the Thi Vai import terminal near Ho Chi Minh City, which began taking LNG in 2023 and supplies gas-fired power plants that started commercial operations in mid-December. Vietnam imported about 0.5 million tons of LNG in 2025 — all bought on the spot market — Kpler data showed.
Shell also said on Tuesday it signed a farm-in agreement — buying into exploration licences — with Chevron’s Cabinda Gulf Oil to take a 35% stake in Angola’s ultra-deepwater Blocks 49 and 50. The deal has government approval and is pending final legal steps, while Chevron said it remains subject to regulatory approval. “New exploration, such as in Angola, is important to sustaining production into the 2030s,” Shell said, adding it aims to grow gas output 1% through 2030 and keep oil production steady. 3
On the capital-returns front, Shell bought 735,166 shares in London and 737,132 shares in Amsterdam on Jan. 6 for cancellation, the company said in a buyback update. The repurchases are part of a $3.5 billion programme announced on Oct. 30 that runs through Jan. 30, with Merrill Lynch International making trading decisions independently. Shell has said it intends to finish the programme before it reports fourth-quarter results. 4
Brent settled at $60.70 a barrel on Tuesday, keeping pressure on energy earnings expectations. “Oil supply will be sufficient in 2026, with or without an increase in production from the OPEC member,” said Tamas Varga, an analyst at PVM Oil. For Shell, a weaker oil strip can sharpen scrutiny of cash returns and spending discipline. 5
But the new deals will take time to show up in cash flow, and the Angola entry still needs final legal and regulatory steps. If crude stays near $60 or sinks further, traders may focus less on expansion and more on how much Shell can keep sending back through dividends and buybacks.
