Published by
Reuters UK
Reuters UK
By David Gaffen (Reuters) – In July 2020, just a few months after the COVID-19 pandemic started to spiral out of control, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden declared world oil demand may have passed its peak – all but condemning his company’s core business to eventual obscurity. “Demand will take a long time to recover if it recovers at all,” he told reporters after the Anglo-Dutch energy company reported a sharp drop in second-quarter profit. Van Beurden wasn’t alone in his gloomy view. Like much else during the pandemic, what was happening in fuel markets was unprecedented. Demand had fallen so sharp…