As the downturn in the oil and gas industry continues to bite Shell is axing 1,300 staff in Malaysia, more than 20% of its workforce in the country.
In a statement Shell Malaysia said it would be cutting approximately 1,300 staff positions from its upstream division over the next two years. The company said it had 6,000 staff in Malaysia meaning cuts will affect around 21.6% of the workforce.
“This is certainly a very difficult decision to make. We have made adjustments in our upstream portfolio and we will drive greater efficiency in our operations. Regretfully, these have resulted in an unavoidable impact on staff,” said Iain Lo, chairman of Shell Malaysia.
“Shell Malaysia is preparing itself to be more competitive in a low oil price environment. Continuing business as usual is not sustainable. We are taking difficult, but necessary action. We have a strategy going forward, anchored on our scale and competitiveness in the upstream and leveraging our leading brand in the downstream.”
Earlier this week Shell announced it was pulling out of its Arctic exploration off Alaska for “the foreseeable future”.
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