Shell doubles up on green spending and vows to halve carbon footprint

Anglo-Dutch giant to spend $2bn on wind power, biofuels and electric cars as it bows to shareholder pressure by setting new company climate change target

Shell has doubled its spending on clean power and bowed to shareholder pressure by promising to halve the carbon footprint of the energy it sells by 2050, as the oil giant said it was stepping up its ambitions on green energy.

The Anglo Dutch firm is increasing capital expenditure for its new energies division, to $1bn-$2bn (£750m to £1.5bn) a year for 2018-2020, up from a previous plan of up to $1bn a year by 2020.

Related: Shell to open electric vehicle charging points at UK petrol stations

The 2015 Paris climate agreement is the first truly global deal to tackle climate change. It commits governments to limit temperature rises to no more than 2C – which scientists say is the threshold of safety, beyond which the effects of global warming are likely to become catastrophic and irreversible –  and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5C. It has been signed by 197 countries. The US is on course to become the only country outside the agreement if it follows through on President Donald Trump’s vow to leave.