London — Royal Dutch Shell’s boss said it would be "foolhardy" for the oil and gas producer to set hard targets to reduce carbon emissions as it risked exposing the energy giant to legal challenges. The energy industry has struggled in recent years to find a clear path to secure its role as the world shifts from fossil fuels to meet the 2015 Paris climate agreement goals. Last year, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden set out ambitions to halve its carbon emissions by 2050, far exceeding rivals, but the Dutch CEO resisted calls by activists and some investors to set binding targets. "It would be somewhat foolhardy to put ourselves in a legal bind by saying these are the targets we will adopt," Van Beurden said at a company event. "Before we put ourselves at the mercy of a legal challenge, I want to make sure we are doing the right thing first." Van Beurden, a vocal proponent of the world’s need to meet the Paris goals, urged investors to trust him. "You have to believe us that setting an ambi...
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