Energy giant Shell this morning announced profits had fallen back to £8.14billion in the third quarter of this year, as the lower oil price fed through to the company's bottom line.
The Q3 figure was behind the £9.87billion of adjusted earnings recorded in Q2.
The London-listed group had reported two consecutive quarters of record profits in the first half of this year amid soaring oil and gas prices.
Shell chief executive Ben van Beurden said: "We are delivering robust results at a time of ongoing volatility in global energy markets.
"We continue to strengthen Shell's portfolio through disciplined investment and transform the company for a low-carbon future.
"At the same time, we are working closely with governments and customers to address their short and long-term energy needs."
New share buybacks
The firm also announced a new share buyback programme resulting in an additional £3.44billion of distributions - expected to be completed by the Q4 results announcement.
Investors in Shell will also be pleased to hear that it plans to increase the dividend per share for the fourth quarter by 15%.
The company stated that there had been a turbulent economic environment in Q3, with lower crude prices and higher gas prices compared to the previous quarter.
Mr Ben van Beurden will shortly be standing down from the top job down after nine years. The new CEO is to be Wael Sawan, currently Shell's director of integrated gas, renewables and energy solutions.
Purchase of Corallian Energy
Earlier this month, Shell made a multi-million-pound acquisition which displayed another vote of confidence from the company in the future of the UK North Sea.
The decision to buy Corallian Energy from Reabold Resources gives it ownership of the Victory gas discovery west of Shetland.
Shell said the move was part of its broader intent to spend £20billion to £25billion on the UK energy system in the next decade, with the aim of investing 75% in development of low and zero-carbon products and services.
The Corallian acquisition came just a matter of weeks after Shell decided to develop the Jackdaw gas field in the UK North Sea.
Windfall tax debate
Shell is the first of several energy companies reporting results over the next seven days, amid renewed debate about expanding the Energy Profits Levy on North Sea operators.
Yesterday, Aberdeen South MP Stephen Flynn (SNP) told BBC Radio Scotland that he was in favour of a windfall tax on energy companies.
"As I understand it, that is the position of not just ourselves (the SNP) but also the Labour party and indeed many on the Conservative backbenches," he said.
"There has obviously been reticence from the Conservative party previously, but they reversed that stance when they brought forward with the windfall tax earlier in the year. Expanding the scope and scale is one of the most obvious things the government could do to in order to make sure there is additional revenue coming into the exchequer, which would obviously alleviate some of the cuts that Jeremy Hunt is undoubtedly going to make.
"When we are having this conversation, we need to reflect on the fact that these are not profits that were planned for, these are profits that have come about because of the war in Ukraine. It has not been because of business investment, it has been because of bad luck and horrific circumstances on the continent of Europe that have caused this.
"So, it is only right that those companies pay back into the public purse at a rate which is appropriate and I don’t think the government has got that right at this moment in time. We need to make sure that it is not the public who are feeling the burden of this, but those with the broadest shoulders."