Documents from a lawsuit filed by a former employee revealed that US crude oil trading generates profits for Shell amounting to one billion dollars annually.

According to the testimony of the former head of Shell's US crude oil trading division, the crude oil trading unit typically generates revenues ranging from $950 million to $1 billion annually.

This figure represents between 13% and 15% of the total pre-tax profits achieved by Shell in the United States in recent years.

Details of the financial performance of Shell's oil and gas trading division, which is the largest in the world, are among the company's best-kept secrets, and the company does not disclose these details. What worries some investors is that this section can achieve abundant profits, but it may be volatile and even cause losses as well.
Traders make profits by buying and selling oil and gas, taking advantage of gaps between supply and demand around the world to stabilize profits, and their salaries include promises of large bonuses based on their performance, which may exceed the company CEO Will Swan’s annual bonus.

The lawsuit also reveals a legal dispute between Shell and a former employee who claimed the company breached the contract; It demanded $15 million, including $6 million for the 2021 bonus.

The employee had already received a bonus of more than $5 million in 2020 for her work the previous year, and a jury returned a verdict in Shell's favor, nullifying the employee's entire claim against the company.