Chief executive Ben van Beurden said the oil and gas giant will focus investment on the kind of big fields which will generate high returns over the long term and which the company has made clear are in short supply in the North Sea.

Shell is investing heavily in two giant fields West of Shetland with BP, which are due to come onstream in coming months and could be in production for years, but has nothing similar in the pipeline.

In an update on strategy following the recent £35 billion takeover of BG, Shell underlined it has limited interest in operating mature fields, which can be costly to run. Much of the North Sea portfolio is mature.

Last month Shell announced plans to shed 475 jobs in Aberdeen, around a quarter of the total, as it looked to boost profitability in the North Sea where it has said operating costs are too high.

It had already cut 500 jobs since the crude price started tumbling in 2014.

With Mr Henry noting yesterday that mature fields in established areas would be prime sale candidates, the update will heighten expectations that Shell will try to offload North Sea fields if it can find buyers.

Shell declined to say how many North Sea fields it regarded as core.

Mr Henry said Shell is targeting further reductions in running costs with its actions informed by a “lower for ever” oil price mentality.

He noted that 40 per cent of the operating cost budget went on staff.

Shell has been making progress towards achieving the 12,500 job cuts targeted globally in a “respectful way”.

The company expects to be able to squeeze further cost out of the supply chain.

The implications of Shell’s analysis are alarming for other industry players.

It is working on the assumption that the oil price will remain below $50 per barrel this year rising into the mid 60s in 2018.

While Mr van Beurden reiterated the company’s view that growing demand for energy will support prices in future, Shell does not appear to expect a return to the $115/bbl levels reached in 2014.

Directors have increased the target for the amount of synergies they expect to be achieved following the BG deal, to $4.5bn from $3.5bn.

Shell has said it will close BG’s office in Aberdeen.

While the company has been criticised for overpaying for BG, Mr van Beurden said the acquisition has put the company in a good position to achieve sustained growth. The takeover increased Shell’s exposure to key countries such as Brazil and Australia and presented an opportunity to accelerate the reshaping of the company.