Anglo-Dutch supermajor Shell said it will appeal a ruling by a Dutch court that ordered it to significantly slash its carbon emissions over the next decade.

A landmark judgment issued in May by the district court in The Hague said that Shell and its suppliers must cut CO2 emissions by 45% by 2030 from 2019 levels.

Shell’s CEO Ben van Beurden said the company would speed up its energy transition plans in response to the order, but it will also appeal the ruling, noting that the move to single out Shell does not help reduce global CO2 emissions.

“We agree urgent action is needed and we will accelerate our transition to net zero. But we will appeal because a court judgment, against a single company, is not effective,” van Beurden said.

In April this year, Shell published its energy transition strategy and in May became the first energy company to put that scheme to a vote of shareholders. Shell said the decision did not consider its detailed updated energy transition strategy.

The lawsuit against Shell, filed in 2019, was led by Milieudefensie a Dutch arm of Friends of the Earth, alongside six other bodies and 17,000 co-plaintiffs.

Roger Cox, a lawyer for Milieudefensie, stated: “The judges have passed a well-considered judgment on Shell in the verdict. We are confident that this judgment will be re-affirmed on appeal. The science is clear on the consequences of and solutions to dangerous climate change.”