Shell has welcomed a Dutch court’s decision to overturn a landmark climate ruling that ordered the energy firm to reduce its carbon emissions by 45% by 2030 compared with 2019 levels.

The Court of Appeal in the Hague overturned the 2021 ruling in the case brought by the Netherlands arm of Friends of the Earth (Milieudefensie) and other campaigners.

Reacting to the ruling on Tuesday, Shell’s chief executive officer Wael Sawan said: “We are pleased with the court’s decision, which we believe is the right one for the global energy transition, the Netherlands and our company.”

Shell’s target to become a net zero emissions energy business by 2050 “remains at the heart” of its strategy and is transforming the business, he said.

The ruling, which can now be appealed to the Dutch Supreme Court, comes as the Cop29 UN climate conference entered its second day in Azerbaijan.

Green activists called the decision a “setback” for the battle against climate action, but have vowed to fight on.

The original district court ruling ordered Shell to reduce its net carbon emissions across its operations and from the products it sells, applying Dutch duty of care and international human rights laws to the company, over and above its corporate requirements.

This meant the company would be legally obliged to significantly reduce the exploration of new oil and gas operations – something that the oil and gas giant previously pledged to do but is now facing pressure for backtracking on.

Shell argued that this legal obligation would do little to reduce emissions, as customers would take their business elsewhere.

After the judgment on Tuesday, Donald Pols, director of Milieudefensie, said: “This ruling affects us deeply. It is a setback for us, the climate movement and millions of people around the world who are worried.