Royal Dutch Shell will sell some of its North Sea oilfields as part of a $15 billion divestment programme over the next two years overseen by its new chief executive Ben van Beurden.

A person close to the company said Shell would divest mature assets in the North Sea and elsewhere, more of its refining portfolio and some projects that have not yet reached final investment decision.

Shell has underperformed the European oil and gas sector by 6 per cent over the past year, dragged down by disappointing quarterly results and concerns about how it allocates capital. It has been criticised for spending too much and not rewarding shareholders enough.

The company insists it must continue to invest heavily to improve returns and drive dividend growth over the long-term. – (Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2014)